


StarStruck

by niajaxx (msfoxxyfoxxy)



Category: Professional Wrestling, World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Celebrity, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, Blow Jobs, M/M, Public Sex, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-28
Updated: 2017-07-14
Packaged: 2018-11-20 11:47:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 24,996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11335056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/msfoxxyfoxxy/pseuds/niajaxx
Summary: Dean is a journalist/interviewer who works for Hollywood Insider (he isn't quite sure how he ended up there either), a place where sucking up to celebrities was a necessity. Problem was, Dean just can't keep his opinions to himself. Especially opinions about an annoying, player, pretty boy who is just an "okay" actor, in his opinion.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a rewrite of a fic I posted on fanfiction.net and eventually stopped updating for personal reasons last year, so if the concept sounds familiar that's why. I'm gonna be "fixing" the chapters and after/during chapter four, I'm gonna be carrying the story in a different direction that I originally planned a year ago. Hope you like it!

If someone told Dean that, in the future, he'd be employed by Hollywood Insider while he was in college working his ass off for his Journalism degree so he could become a Serious Journalist™ that wrote inspirational think pieces, groundbreaking articles, and alarming exposés, he would have probably punched them, because how dare they? How dare they wish that on him? How dare they even have the audacity to curse him with a lifetime of vapid celebrity worship while he was busting his ass in school so he could go on to do great things?

Despite all that, he somehow ended up here, sitting at the KLMUniversal Studios headquarters, waiting for the producers and agents to figure out why Alexa Bliss, the new teen pop sensation who was getting her own show on the network this fall, hadn't shown up for her interview yet. She was supposed to be there at 10am to answer some questions, judge some fashion, and promote her annoying hyper-pop album and undoubtedly vapid TV show. It was now 1pm, Dean was starving, and she wasn't there.

Dean would love to say that this sort of thing was rare, but it wasn't. Celebrities usually did what they wanted, no matter the repercussions. In fact, the more popular they were, the more likely they were to be assholes, no matter how sweet they seemed in interviews and promo tours.

Dean wasn't fond of Hollywood. He wasn't the type to let celebrities do what they wanted. He didn't schmooze or brown nose either, which were both essential to his line of work. Now, how did someone like _him_ get hired at Hollywood Insider, a place where worshiping celebrities was kinda mandatory?

It was a long story, but to make it semi-short: Dean was extremely lucky to get an internship at KLMUniversal while he was in college. While KLMUniversal sometimes leaned too close to the entertainment branch of journalism, he knew he would have been a fool to not apply for the internship. Any news media network would definitely give his resume a second glance with that company’s name on it. After graduating and getting his degree, he became an assistant to the head of Communications & Media Relations at the network, and that's where he met Cesaro.

Cesaro was a rising, stoic action movie star that took a liking to Dean when the other man was tasked with prepping him for the questions the interviewers would be asking him on the weekly recap show on the network's celebrity channel, Hollywood Insider. When Dean jokingly told Cesaro that maybe his new movie would bump him up from the D-list to the B-list, and he would be served sparkling water instead of regular filtered tap water the next time he came to the studio, he was almost fired on the spot by his boss's boss, Hunter, who had overheard the whole thing and started to apologize profusely to Cesaro and his agent. Thankfully, however, Cesaro laughed so hard that he wheezed, and he took off his Louis Vuitton sunglasses for the first time since he'd been there.

The next time Cesaro stopped by KLMUniversal for a webshow interview, he was indeed a B-lister, just like Dean had predicted. He greeted Dean by his name and with a clap on the back like they were old friends. He then proceeded to demand that Dean interviewed him instead of one of the Hollywood Insider regulars. Eager to please a star rapidly on the rise, the showrunners agreed, but they made it clear that the interview would only air if it was good.

The interview was easy because Cesaro was down to Earth. Dean threw out the typical "How did you get in shape for the movie?" type questions and asked some interesting, snarky ones instead like, "Do you have any plans to do other movies besides action?" and "Why the hell do you wear shades indoors?" and "How does it feel to finally get up here with the other sparking water drinkers?". Cesaro had a lot of fun with the interview and the showrunners and producers surprisingly decided to allow it online after editing out the childish snickering and the more brash questions. The interview was far from groundbreaking and edgy, but it was something new for Hollywood Insider, where most of the shows and interviews were about celebrating and worshipping celebrity culture while Dean had no problem making fun of it.

Apparently, Dean's style of interviewing was a refreshing pallet cleanser for the network's audience and he was given his own webshow where he would interview D and C-list celebrities for the Hollywood Insider website. Some of them loved his cynicism, sarcasm, and laid-back attitude, while others were annoyed by it. The audience loved it, though, and he became popular, especially with young women, for some reason, so they kept him around and in front of cameras. In the span of two years, Dean went from a web show host, to a red-carpet correspondent (where he actually spoke to the award show attendees about the show itself and all the nominations instead of what they were wearing), to a weekly interviewer on _This Week in Hollywood_ , one of the most popular shows on the entire network.

This all lead him to the present time, waiting on set with the rest of the team as Alexa Bliss took her sweet ass time arriving.

Honestly, he bitches about it a lot in private, but Dean didn't hate his job. He had a decent income, he got tons of freebies, he met famous people that others would only dream of meeting, he got to travel for free most of the time, and a handful of his coworkers were actually pretty cool. However, this whole ordeal really wasn't what he imagined he'd be doing with his degree and his life. And on days like today, when celebrities didn't even bother to call and give a heads up about being late, he considered putting in applications for places he _actually_ wanted to work.

"Ok, gang, so Miss Bliss won't be coming in anymore," Sasha Banks, one of the producers, said as she typed aggressively on her iPhone. "I have, however, moved Roman's interview up an hour, so we aren't wasting any time and burning any more cash. He'll be here in 15 minutes. Bad news is that Tyler Breeze won't be here soon enough to interview him,” Sasha paused her typing and looked up at Dean pointedly. “So, he'll have to make do with you two."

"I get to interview Roman?!" Summer Rae, his cohost asked excitedly. "He can't see me like this! I gotta get my makeup fixed up."

Dean scoffed as Summer sprinted away in her obscenely and impressively high heels to find a makeup artist that was willing to do last minute touch ups. Dean didn't mirror her excitement. Guys like Roman were his least favorite types of celebs to interview. He was an A-lister which meant that Dean wouldn't get to ask the cool questions, and he'd have to pretend that he actually _liked_ the guy.

Also, currently, Roman was shrouded in a scandal after TMZ caught him out on a date with the heiress Nikki Bella. He'd stolen Nikki away from her fiancé and they went travelling all over Europe for a month before she came back to America alone. TMZ caught her at the airport and she made a big scene and threw her luggage at the paparazzi after they asked her what happened to her and Roman's whirlwind romance. Roman was then spotted butt-naked on a yacht with Amelia Moreau, a French socialite, the very next day. The whole ordeal angered Nikki Bella's fans who rightfully felt like Roman had disrespected her by dumping her before engaging in public nudity with someone else shortly after.

Roman had a new movie coming out and obviously, his PR team wanted to do some damage control. Celebrity interviews was a go-to for reputation management because, while under close scrutiny of PR people and agents, the interviewers would ask safe and fun questions to remind the audience, "Hey! They're not an asshole! They're only human, just like us! Look how fun they are! Wow!"

Needless to say, Dean was usually kept away from those type of interviews because of his brash attitude and lack of filter.

"Ambrose," Sasha said as she continued to stare at Dean. He couldn't believe she paused her texting to talk to him. Sasha never stopped moving. Whatever she had to say was going to be serious. "Roman's the big leagues, ok? And as you know, he's here to promote _Martyr_. Just ask him questions about the movie and let Summer handle the discussion."

"All due respect, ma'am, the whole point of me being on the show is to grill celebrities," Dean said, watching as Sasha cocked an eyebrow. "Summer's the sweet, I'm the heat. What do you think the audience will say when I'm turned into a drone?"

"I don't care what the audience says, Ambrose," Sasha replied. "I care about Roman's PR team breathing down my neck, and I care about him reappearing on one of our shows in the future. I care about the huge paycheck we're all getting to make him look good. Look, if you can't hold your insults for one day, Summer can do it alone."

"Alright, fine," Dean conceded. "I won't ask anything rude or intrusive."

Sasha smiled sweetly at him and pulled out her phone again. "I just text you the preapproved questions. Have fun."

Dean heard his phone chime and when he reached for it, Sasha turned and left.

* * *

 

Roman arrived with his busybody agent, JoJo (whose pint size gave people the incorrect notion that she was meek, but she was actually brash and had a hell of a reputation), his twin cousins, a robust female Dean saw sometimes in gossip mags with Roman, his personal assistant, and a list of things he wanted available to him during his time at the studio.

Roman wasn't new to the company, and they knew him pretty well, so they had the items he required already waiting for him when he swaggered through the doors. Dean watched from his place on the fake living room set as JoJo and Sasha air kissed and immediately started going over the approved questions checklist one more time.

When they were finished, Sasha called him over to make introductions. Roman didn't give a reaction when Dean was introduced and Dean had a feeling that if he extended his hand, Roman would leave him hanging, so he didn't. He had too much pride for that. When Summer was introduced, however, Roman's light eyes immediately lit up and he flashed her a sly smile and Summer blushed under her already made up pink cheeks.

"I was pretty upset about coming in earlier than expected, but I'm glad I did," Roman proclaimed, looking Summer up and down like she was artwork. Dean supposed she was really a work of art, with her undoubtedly expensive pouf dress that accentuated her already long ass legs. Roman’s eyes seemed to travel a mile from her painted pink toes to the top of her Barbie-blonde head.

Dean raised an eyebrow and watched as Summer giggled and twirled a blond strand of hair around her manicured finger.

"Mr. Reigns, it's an honor to meet you. I'm a big fan." Summer gushed, starstruck. "You know, _Rangers_ is my favorite movie?"

Dean groaned and turned to walk back towards the set, muttering about annoying A-listers and blushing coworkers along the way.

* * *

 

The interview went on as planned at first. Summer flirted, Dean asked his boring movie-related questions, and Roman charmed his way through the whole thing. They were almost close to wrapping up when Summer brought up Roman's character in the new film he was there to promote.

"So, tell me a little more about your character in Martyr," Summer said as she leaned closer to Roman on the couch.

(art by [darius](http://reinmeka.tumblr.com/post/162452109967/i-really-rushed-through-coloring-because-i-have))

"Well, Taika has been one of my favorite characters to play. He's complex and, you know, he isn't a great guy at first. He's actually really selfish. And he's a bit of a player, too."

Dean grinned. "Well, looks like that role is right up your alley."

It slipped out. Dean didn't mean to say that, but it was too late. Everyone was staring at him with their mouths open, including Sasha, who was standing behind the monitor shaking her head back and forth.

"Excuse me?" Roman asked after a tense silence.

"I, uh," Dean stammered. "I mean... Taika doesn't seem to be far away from yourself in terms of personality."

Roman cocked his head. "Taika starts off as a selfish human being who's only out for himself. One might even say he's downright terrible. Make no mistake, Ambrose, I'm no Taika."

The way Roman said "Ambrose" really pissed Dean the hell off, and before he knew it, he was gearing up for an argument. Typical.

"Well, you can't deny that you're similar," Dean disagreed. "Now, from the trailers, we can see that Taika is an attractive playboy with a steady rotation of women who had everything handed to him. Surely you see the similarities between the character and yourself."

Sasha groaned and stepped away from behind the monitors. "Ok, let's cut and-"

"Nah, I think we should finish this," Roman said, waving Sasha off.

Sasha shook her head. "Mr. Reigns-"

"I said I'd like the finish the interview," Roman repeated, coolly. "Or does my agent have to step in?"

Sasha huffed and looked back at JoJo, who looked displeased, but she simply nodded. Sasha rolled her eyes and turned to stare daggers at Dean. "Fine," she gritted out through her teeth. She walked back to the monitors and tapped the director on his shoulder. "Let's keep rolling."

Roman nodded once before he turned back to look at Dean, "You know, I think it's amazing how you think you know me."

"I know enough," Dean replied. "It's my job to know enough."

Roman chuckled, "You know _scandals_ , Dean. You don't know _me_."

Dean opened his mouth and closed it a few times before he thought about what Roman said. Really thought about it. He concluded that Roman was right. Dean knew all the drama surrounding Roman's life, but he didn't _know_ anything else about him. However, did he really have to know much else? Or was the drama enough?

"Aren't the scandals a part of you, though?" Dean inquired. "The choices you make, along with the mistakes… they're all you. Unless they're all PR stunts, which I doubt they are because this interview is a PR stunt itself, cooked up to cover up the real choices you made. This interview we were having before, it wasn't really you. This conversation we're having right now, however, is you. The TMZ shots of you partying until 4am, the video of you trashing hotels and paparazzi cameras, the pictures of you jet setting with heiresses and socialites… those are all you."

Roman smirked and he was quiet for a long time. Dean was painfully aware of everyone in the room still staring at them. Sasha was glaring at him while Summer watched them both with a nervous expression. She wasn't used to these things. Her interviews consisted of light flirting and jokes. Sure, the point of their partnership was to be the stereotypical "ying and yang" - one person was nice and the other was grumpy - but Dean had never gone this far. He felt kinda bad for bringing this awkward conversation upon her.

"You're right," Roman said after a while. He was still smirking, looking cocksure and unoffended. "I do party. I have fun. I fuck around," Roman paused and threw a smirk at his entourage who all laughed like a high school clique. "But it's not all me. That's my point. You don't know me because all you know about me are the bad things. If you knew the good things, maybe you wouldn't be so quick to judge me."

Dean nodded. "Point taken, but that still doesn't mean you aren't similar to Taika."

"Slightly similar, yes, but do I consider Taika and I the same? No." Roman insisted. "The only thing we have in common is the fact that we have famous parents and that we love women. Before his character development, Taika is a horrible human being who only thinks about himself. I don't consider myself a horrible human being."

"I think all the guys whose girlfriends you've swept away will disagree with that," Dean scoffed.

Roman's eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled wider, "Well, I never forced any women to come with me. It's my theory that if they can be swept away, they weren't too into him anyway."

Dean shook his head. "You ever been cheated on, Roman?"

"Are you kiddin' me?" Roman asked, aghast. "Never."

"Well, you probably don't understand what a selfish act it is to sleep with someone who is taken," Dean said.

"You speak like someone who's gotten left in the dust," Roman chuckled again, and so did his entourage.

"I did, and trust me, it ain't nice," Dean replied.

Roman's smile faltered, but it stayed on regardless. "That's a shame," he said with mock sincerity. His eyes scanned Dean from head to toe, the same way he looked at Summer earlier, and he bit his plump bottom lip before his voice dropped, low and deep. "Who'd cheat on a guy like you, huh?"

The blatant flirting actually took Dean by surprise. It wasn't the first time a celebrity flirted with him, but this time, he was shocked by it. It was _Roman Reigns_. World famous _heterosexual_ playboy.

Out of the corner of his eyes, Dean saw Summer shift and he heard her clear her throat. He held Roman's intense gaze and he watched as Roman's smile began to widen, baring teeth and making him resemble a shark.

He was toying with him.

Dean wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

"You'd be surprised," Dean drawled. "As you can probably guess, I get tiring very easily."

Roman licked his lips and leaned closer as if they were having a normal, interesting conversation. "Do you?"

Dean nodded and tried to keep his cool despite the pricking he felt in the back of his neck and the pooling low in his gut. "I've got a smart mouth. A lot of people can't handle it."

"I can," Roman bragged. "Obviously."

Dean heard snickers from Roman's crew again and his face went red. How did the conversation get to this? Roman completely steered them into a territory he wasn't comfortable with.

"Gentlemen, let's wrap this up." Summer interjected, looking flushed and a little annoyed.

"Yes," Sasha agreed, reappearing from behind the monitors again. "We've only got 30 minutes before the next show begins filming. We'll use whatever we have and make a half-assed interview out of it."

"That sounds like a great idea," Roman said, finally looking away from Dean.

They paused filming for a minute and Dean kept his eyes down, not wanting to catch Sasha's angry gaze or Roman's flirtatious one again. His heart was hammering in his chest from anger. Who did Roman think he was?

When they started filming again, Dean watched, annoyed, as Roman took Summer's hand and raised it to his lips before he gave it a kiss. "Thank you for having me."

"Oh!" Summer gasped. "It was a pleasure, Roman." Summer turned back towards the camera, her hand still entwined with Roman's. "Make sure you guys check out the biggest summer blockbuster in years! See the movie critics are raving about! Martyr comes out May 20th. Wanna sound off about today's show? Hit us up on twitter-"

Dean let Summer's closing address to the audience fade out from his attention before he turned to look at Roman again. He was shocked to see that Roman was already looking back at him and when he caught Dean's eyes, he winked at him.

That asshole.

After everything was wrapped, Roman got up and pulled Summer up as well and Dean watched as her knees all but buckled. He rolled his eyes.

"You wanna accompany my friends and I for a drink?" Roman asked, flashing Summer a winning smile. "And maybe we can break off and hang out by ourselves for a bit afterwards?"

"I'd love to!" Summer said quickly, and then composed herself. She flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder and visibly forced herself to relax. "I mean, sure. Let me just grab my things."

Dean watched her sway away and tried not to say something rude to Roman, who was watching her walk away with delight.

"Ambrose," Sasha said as she came marching towards them. "I'll meet you in my office."

Dean opened his mouth to argue, but she shut him up with a cutting glare. Sasha then touched Roman's shoulder gently.

"I want to apologize for what happened today, Roman," She began as she led him off elsewhere. Roman didn't offer him another glance.

Dean scowled at his retreating back as he and Sasha walked off. He waited until they were far away enough before he allowed himself to relax.

* * *

 

Dean didn't get fired, but he got an official warning. There were no warnings at KLMUniversal and definitely none at Hollywood Insider, but, according to Sasha, the only thing that saved his ass from getting fired and getting blackballed in the industry was the fact that Roman wasn't offended by the interview.

Well, that was surprising.

Roman technically saved his ass, but Dean still disliked him. He spent hours on the phone that night complaining to his friend Kevin, who just laughed at him like Dean's life was some sick joke.

The interview aired the next day and Dean didn't watch it because he knew that most of interview was probably cut out. He was in the middle of whipping up a quick garden salad when his phone buzzed with a new text message. Dean grabbed his phone and unlocked it as he shoved some lettuce into his mouth.

 ** _You're trending on twitter._** The text message said. It was from Kevin.

"What?" Dean asked the empty room, confused. He accidentally spat a little bit of lettuce on the counter and he hurriedly wiped it off with the hem of his t-shirt like the gross bachelor he was.

_What r u talking about dude?_

**everyones talking about Roman's interview**

**Dude you really didn't hold anything back lmfao**

Dean gaped at his phone for a few seconds before he opened his twitter app. He quickly went to the trending topics and, sure enough, Roman was the number one trend, and his own name wasn't far down, taking the 3rd spot.

What the fuck?

He clicked on his name and was immediately met with memes and screencaps of his interview with Roman. Honestly, Dean didn't think his interview was that bad. Why was it such a big deal?

Dean scrolled through tweets of people either congratulating him for calling Roman out or yelling at him for bringing up his personal life in an interview about his movie. On top of all that, there was already a Buzzfeed article about him boldly titled " **25 FACES WE MAKE WHEN WE'RE TALKING TO A FUCKBOY** ". Dean clicked on it out of sheer shock and curiosity and was even more surprised to see GIFs of his bored and annoyed expressions throughout the entire interview. There was even one of him giving Summer slight judging looks as she blushed at Roman's compliments. He didn't even know he was making those faces at the time.

This was fucking weird and Dean quickly became overwhelmed. He turned off his phone without even checking his twitter notifications or the series of text messages coming in from Kevin. He picked up his salad and flopped down on the couch and wondered if this would help or hurt his career in the long run. Would he ever get his dream job after this mini-explosion about him on social media? Do news networks even hire people who got into celebrity drama or used to be memes?

Dean started to pick at his salad and eat everything with his hands distractedly. He was too stressed out for forks at the moment.

 


	2. Chapter 2

For the next few days, Dean kept his head down. It wasn't a challenging task because nobody paid much attention to you in LA if you mind your own business. He also actively stayed away from the internet and all the responses towards his interview, unless Kevin sent him memes or clickbait articles whenever he found a good one or one ridiculous enough to actually piss Dean the hell off.

He'd never gotten this big of a reaction to one of his interviews before. Sure, he was used to people getting annoyed with him because it was expected when your whole shtick was to ask celebrities question other people didn't really have the guts to. But this… this was different. The interview itself was barely twenty minutes and his little back and forth with Roman couldn't have been more than ten minutes. Still, it kept tongues wagging and it kept Roman's name along with his scandals in the spotlight.

Which was exactly the opposite of what his PR team wanted. At least, that’s what Dean assumed.

Dean was nervous to go to work a few days later. He kept imagining a scenario of him walking into the studio only to be met with Sasha and JoJo. They'd both turn to look at him before Sasha would explain in that calm, yet intense, voice of hers that KLMUniversal has decided to part ways with him because of the overwhelming reaction to the interview and that they wish him the best of luck on his future endeavors while knowing fully well that those endeavors were probably gonna be low paying freelance writing or retail.

When he walked through the doors, however, everything was going on like normal. Sure, some people turned to give him amused looks as he walked past them to his dressing room, but nobody acted out of the ordinary. In fact, when Dean finally saw Sasha, the only thing she had to say about the interview with Roman before she launched into a tirade about Alexa Bliss demanding another sit-down later that day was that Roman's team actually _wanted_ the interview to be aired.

It was fucking weird, but Dean wasn't complaining. He dodged the bullet. He wasn't fired and blackballed, Sasha and Hunter weren't mad at him, and since millennials had short attention spans and fading trends, his little interview will be forgotten in a few weeks.

Later that day, Dean and Summer had a sit-down with soap opera star Dana Brooke, who was promoting her healthy living cookbook that had a semi-witty title, but Dean couldn't remember the name of it to save his life. She was a sweet girl, though, and had no problems with Dean's dry humor, so it was going to be an easy interview.

Dean was busy skimming through Dana's complimentary cookbook (it was called Dinner with Dana) when Summer barged through his dressing room door.

"Dean! You won't believe what just showed up in my mailbox!" Summer singsonged, waving two black, large cards in front of his face.

Dean grabbed his coffee cup before Summer could knock it over and frowned. "Good morning to you, too, sunshine."

Summer rolled her eyes, but she still smiled down at him happily. She dropped the cards in his lap and perched at the edge of his vanity surface. Good thing he thought ahead and saved his coffee.

"Good morning!" She exclaimed excitedly. She clapped her hands like a child and Dean wondered how someone could be so bubbly all the time. It was 8am. "After the world premiere of _Martyr_ , Roman's having an after-party and guess who's invited?"

"Uh, you?" Dean asked, picking up the cards and staring at the fancy font. Dean actually thought it was ridiculous how expensive the invitation looked and felt in his hand.

Summer nodded and her blonde hair with the rubber curler thingies in them bounced. "Yes! And you, too!"

Dean raised an eyebrow. "Me? Are you sure?"

Summer grabbed the cards away from him and kept one for herself before she shoved the other into his hand again. "Read it, doofus!"

Dean stared down at the embroidered card, and… well he'll be damned. It was an invite to the party and it did indeed have his name on it. Dean was confused. He could understand why Summer was invited because she and Roman seemed to hit it off, but Dean? Why would Roman want him there?

"And the invitation allows a plus one," Summer said. "Who are you bringing?"

"Nobody," Dean scoffed. "I'm not going."

Summer stared at him for a whole minute before she leaned forward and turned her head as if she was trying to hear him correctly this time. She moved the curler that was blocking her ear and asked, "What?"

"I'm not going," Dean repeated. "I don't even like the guy. Why would I go to his party?"

"Well, I can't force you, but I do hope you come," Summer said as she got up again, a lot less enthusiastic than she was before. "I feel like this invite is an olive branch. Maybe he wants to make amends."

"I'll think about it," Dean muttered, and then added quickly, "Only because you're starting to pout."

Summer smiled again, her face as bright as the sun, and she gave him two thumbs up on the way out the door. Dean stared at the invite for a while longer before he shoved it in his pocket and forgot about it for the rest of the day.

* * *

 

Dean brought Kevin along as his plus one to the stupid party. Dean really was not going to go, but Kevin guilt him into going and bringing him along because Dean never let him come with him to fancy celebrity stuff. The reason for that was simple: Kevin was an off-putting asshole. If celebrities could barely handle Dean on a good day, they'd flat out have Kevin tackled by their bodyguards after having one conversation with the guy.

Kevin wanted to come to this party so badly, however, that he swore that he wouldn't insult anybody too important or post pictures of celebrities on his snapchat with rude captions.

The party was held at a fancy rooftop terrace that was so high up that Dean almost fell asleep in the elevator. When he and Kevin stepped out of the elevator and onto the roof, they were immediately greeted by a butler who offered to take their jackets and was swiftly followed by a waiter who offered them a flute of champagne.

"Wow," Kevin said as he took in his surroundings. "This place is fucking awesome. Is this what all fancy actor parties are like?"

"No," Dean replied as he looked around in awe as well. The area was beautifully decorated with all white furniture with stark black accents. There were a lot of greenery around, giving the place a modern eco vibe, and the dim orange candles made everything seem slightly intimate. There were beautiful women _everywhere_ adding a certain aesthetic to the party. Everywhere Dean looked, there was a supermodel or a socialite sprinkled amongst the costars of the movie and various other acclaimed and distinguished celebrities. "This is… really extravagant."

Dean seemed to be the only one of his kind at the party. Honestly, what the fuck was he and Kevin even doing here? He made a mental note to ask Roman why he was invited later.

They made their way through the decorative crowd until they reached a perfect spot for people watching by the railing overlooking the city. Dean and Kevin stood there for a while, chatting about all the actors they spotted throughout the night. Everyone of note seemed to be there except for the man of the hour. But, of course, Roman was "fashionably late" to his own damn party. How typical. How very Roman Reigns.

Roman actually didn't arrive until about an hour after Dean did, and by then Dean was tipsy because the waiters seemed to know the exact moment his glass was empty and was always quick to give him a full one.

Dean wouldn't admit it, but his eyes tracked Roman as he made his way through the crowd, stopping once in a while for people to congratulate him and stroke his ego.

Apparently, the movie was getting amazing reviews from and was predicted to be the biggest blockbuster of the year. It was actually quite shocking to see Roman star in critically acclaimed movies all of a sudden because, at the start of his career, he only played love interests in teen dramas and Rom-Coms. That was where he got most of his fame and his "heartthrob" title. When he got older, he grew tired of that and he went on to play in comedies and a few action movies here and there. After that, he took a break from acting and spend all of his time and money living it up. A few years ago, he came back to the acting scene and got an amazing, meaty role in Field Lights, a movie about a football player who suffered a terrible brain injury. That role won him a Golden Globe. Judging by the reactions of everyone who had seen this new movie, he'd probably win another Golden Globe. Maybe even an Oscar.

Dean was jostled out of his thoughts by someone nudging his shoulder. He and Kevin turned to see Summer with another woman Dean recognized to be Roman's assistant, who he'd seen when she accompanied him to the interview.

"You came!" Summer exclaimed as she slapped Dean playfully on his shoulder with her expensive-looking clutch. "How long have you been here?"

"About an hour," Dean said. "You?"

"I just got here," Summer replied before taking a delicate sip from whatever was in her glass. "I came in with Roman."

Dean raised an eyebrow and Summer rolled her eyes. "It's not like that. I was invited to the premiere and Roman offered to give me a ride here."

"How come we didn't get an invite to the premiere?" Kevin whined, nudging Dean like it was his fault.

Summer screwed up her face and stared down at Kevin, despite being shorter than him. "Is this your plus one?"

"Uh, yeah," Dean said. "Summer, his is Kevin. My buddy from college. Kevin, this is Summer. My cohost."

Kevin rolled his eyes. "I know who Summer is, Dean, I watch all of your episodes."

The assistant giggled, but she quickly stopped when everyone turned to look at her. Dean pretended not to notice Kevin check the poor girl out.

"It's a pleasure," Summer said hesitantly before she gestured to the other woman. "This is Bayley, Roman's personal assistant and a literal saint. She’s the cutest thing."

"Oh, Summer," Bayley huffed, blushing slightly.

"We were just on our way to the buffet table," Summer said, gesturing towards the other side of the area. "You fellas wanna accompany us?"

"Don't mind if we do!" Kevin declared loudly and Bayley smiled at him while Summer gave him another displeased look.

Dean glanced over to the buffet table and saw that Roman was over there. He supposed now would be an appropriate time to give him his congratulations and thank him for the invite, seeing as how the excitement over his arrival had died down and he had less people in his face.

He followed Summer and Bayley across the terrace, maneuvering through the crowd and all the contemporary furniture to get to the long, white banquet table. The food array looked too expensive to even touch. Everything was laid out meticulously and was labeled with these fancy tiny sign posts that Dean found equally cool and silly. There was mushroom and goat cheese bruschetta, several diverse types of sushi, stuffed cherry tomatoes, coconut shrimp, something that looked like hummus stuffed in cucumber and zucchini, cheese puffs that were probably made with fancy old cheese, Vidalia onion tarts (what the hell were those?) … the spread went on and on, and even though a lot of people were dipping in and helping themselves, Dean couldn't imagine anything finishing any time soon. There was _that much_ food.

"I can't believe we were standing over there when we would have been over here." Kevin said as he picked up a small plate and started loading it with finger food.

"You should try the blini with caviar and crème fraîche," Bayley suggested as she watched Kevin full his plate.

"I don't like caviar," Kevin said dismissively. "There's something creepy about it. Besides, I'm more into basic food, you know."

"Well, we have sausage cheddar balls," She offered. "At the other end of the table. Trust me, it's really good. I helped Roman pick it out myself."

"Now that sounds simple and delicious," Kevin marveled. "Take me to it."

Bayley smiled shyly and led Kevin away, leaving Summer and Dean behind.

Dean wasn't too concerned with letting Kevin out of his sight or the gossip Summer was feeding him about the party's attendees because he was busy watching Roman laughing and chatting with his guests a few feet away. Of course, Roman had a new woman on his arm, who Summer told him with a slight bitterness in her voice was his _Martyr_ costar that he was probably dating. Dean wondered how long this one would last. And it was obvious that Roman was working his way to Summer and he wondered how long _that_ will last as well. The thought of Roman toying with Summer and leaving her in the dust was very upsetting to Dean. He and Summer weren't exactly friends, but he liked her. Despite being a bit snarky, she was literally her namesake and it would be a shame for her to get her heart broken.

Summer eventually decided that Dean was boring and she left him to go introduce herself to other, more entertaining people. Dean stayed by the table and ate a lot of stuffed cherry tomatoes. Every time he said he would stop, he ended up picking up another one and popping it in his mouth. He didn't know what it was stuffed with, but it was so damn good and it went amazing with the champagne they kept loading him up with. If he had no shame, he'd totally take the whole tray and bounce the hell up outta there.

"Seems like you like the stuffed tomatoes," A voice said just as Dean went to grab another. "I'll give your compliments to the chef."

Dean turned around to see Roman standing there, surprisingly alone for once. He put the tomato in his mouth and chewed slowly. He felt no shame that he got caught eating all the damn stuffed tomatoes because if he didn't eat it, it was probably just gonna go in the trash anyway! Dean was conserving food and minimizing waste.

Roman watched him with humor dancing in his eyes and he regarded Dean, patiently waiting for the other man to finish chewing.

"That is amazing," Dean said when he swallowed. "By the way, thank you for the invite. I was surprised when Summer said you sent one for me as well."

Roman hummed. "It was actually JoJo's idea. She thinks that when pictures of you being here leaks to the press, people will figure there's no hard feelings between us."

Dean frowned. "You say 'when' like it's definitely going to happen."

"Oh, it is," Roman assured him. "I'm pretty sure some blurry pictures of us standing here talking have been taken already."

Dean looked around, suddenly feeling like he was being watched. "There's no press here. No paparazzi."

Roman shrugged. "Yeah, but everyone is taking selfies and group pictures to show what a good time they're having. You're probably in the background of those. And I have a couple leeches walking around who claim to be my friend all while taking pictures to sell to People Magazine or whoever else is interested. Pictures of us are going to leak and JoJo's counting on it. That's why we didn't enforce a ‘no camera’ rule."

"Wow," Dean muttered as he raised his eyebrows and grabbed another flute of champagne as a waiter walked past them. "Well, I'm glad I can help, but don't you think none of this would be necessary if your team didn't give us the go-ahead to release the interview in the first place? There'd be no mess to clean up."

"JoJo thinks that airing the interview actually helped me because you played the role of the devil's advocate. It let me naturally address the rumors instead of sweeping it under the rug."

"She sounds like an evil genius," Dean mused.

"She is," Roman agreed. "Besides, you can't deny that this has been good for you and your network as well, right?"

Dean scratched the back of his neck. "Yeah, it wasn't my intention for this to be spun into a PR thing, though."

"What was your intention?" Roman inquired. "If you don't mind me asking."

"Didn't really have one," Dean admitted, pausing to sip his champagne. "You just started to piss me off, and the more someone pisses me off, the more verbally competitive I get."

Roman's grin widened and he cocked his hip against the banquet table. "Not a lot of people are willing to just tell me that I piss them off."

"I hope you're not offended," Dean said, really feeling the effects of all that champagne now. "You said you could handle my mouth, remember?"

Roman threw his head back and laughed. Dean noticed that some of the attendees turned to look at them curiously. He wondered if he was going to see a picture of them online tomorrow or in a few days. "I remember. I still stand by my statement. I can handle someone with a big mouth and an attitude problem."

"I don't have an attitude problem," Dean said. "You were being a bit of an asshole."

Roman gave him a look that said, 'come on, man'. "I was chill until you said I was like my character, who is an actual asshole."

"You are," Dean shrugged. "My opinion hasn't changed."

"Are we really doing this again?" Roman folded his arms. "At my own party?"

"I'm a journalist at heart. We can debate and hound someone with our opinions any time, any place."

Roman rolled his eyes. "You're not even a _real_ journalist. You're a _celebrity_ journalist."

Ouch. Dean was actually surprised by how much that hurt. Roman was kind of right, though. It was something Dean had said to himself sometimes. It just hurt to hear someone else say it. Especially someone like Roman, who he barely even liked.

"Oh," Roman said with mock sincerity after an awkward silence. "Did I hurt your feelings?"

"Surprise, surprise," Dean said before he drained his final glass. "Roman Reigns proves he really is an asshole."

With that, Dean turned around and was about to leave when Roman moved in front of him to block his path. "Oh, come on! I thought this was your thing. You're all about the honest truth, right?"

"Get out of my way," Dean growled quietly, trying not to bring any more attention to himself.

"Come on, beautiful!" Roman said as he moved backwards, bumping into people and trying not to let Dean pass. "Don't tell me you're easily offended."

Dean halted his steps at 'beautiful' and got even more vexed at ‘offended’.

"You can dish it out, but you can't take it?" Roman asked, stroking his goatee pensively as if he was studying Dean. Dean felt his temper rise and steam up like a boiling kettle.

"I can take it!" Dean snapped, and then looked around, embarrassed. He lowered his voice, "Look, Roman. Thanks for the invite, and congratulations on your movie, but I gotta go."

"We were having such a friendly conversation." Roman pouted, and Dean felt like punching him in his stupid handsome face. "You insult me, I insult you… It was perfect foreplay."

Dean cocked his head back. "Was this the direction that you thought this conversation was going?"

Roman only gave him a little shrug.

"Is this another PR stunt?" Dean asked, looking around for cameras again. Most of the people who were looking before had started to ignore them again, which he was thankful for.

"Actually," Roman said. "I'm pretty sure if we had sex, it would be a PR disaster. But, you know, risks are meant to be taken."

Dean couldn't believe this shit. Where was Kevin? He had to find Kevin and go home immediately. Right now. ASAP.

"I'm not interested," Dean said simply.

"Ok," Roman said with another shrug. "It was worth a shot."

Wait. That was it? Roman wasn't going to try to convince him? He didn't even want to know why Dean wasn't interested? Because please believe that Dean would have no problem giving Roman a list of reasons why he won't fuck him. He'd do it happily.

"That had to be the lamest proposition for sex that I've ever received," Dean snapped. "Does this routine work on women?!"

"Women like to be wined and dined," Roman said, smirking at Dean's annoyance. "I mean, if that's what you want, I can make something happen-"

"No!" Dean said quickly. "Keep it, alright?”

"There's no shame in getting a little romance, Dean." Roman said, his eyes shining from the reflection of the candles. "I just pegged you for the straightforward type. What you want, some flowers?"

"Oh, fuck off," Dean groaned, hiding is humor and causing Roman to laugh harder. "I'm literally not kidding when I say I'm not interested in you, alright? You're attractive and all, but you're not my type."

"I'm everyone's type."

The nerve of this fucking guy.

"Maybe physically, but everything else is a no for me."

Roman sighed forlornly. "Well, that's a shame because everything about you is so fucking attractive to me."

That. That actually made Dean's stomach flip and his cock start to perk up in interest.

Dean looked around nervously to see if anyone heard, but people were too busy to pay them any mind. He cleared his throat and tugged at the collar of his shirt. He felt hot all of a sudden and definitely drunker than he was a minute ago.

"But you can't force what ain't there," Roman said as he pat Dean's shoulder and finally moved out of his way so he could go. "I'm gonna leave you alone and go mingle. Thanks for coming, Dean."

"Yeah," Dean said, a little shakily.

"Help yourself to more of those tomato things you like. My chef said it would be a hit, but I didn't believe him." Roman said, staring at the near empty tray on the table. "I mean, most Americans are weirded out by the idea of eating escargot. I'm glad you're cultured enough to try it. I know I'm not."

Dean froze. Escargot? What was that? And why would people be weirded out by it?

Roman's mouth twisted in a mocking smile when he noticed Dean's pause and confusion. "You do know that escargot is snails, right? You’re eatin’ snails, Dean."

Dean almost gagged, but he held it down and Roman laughed at him as he walked away. Dean glared at his back and waited until he was gone before he flagged down a waiter and grabbed another glass of champagne to wash down the bile rising in his throat.

That was definitely the last glass. For real this time.

* * *

 

The next time Dean walked into work two days after the party, Summer was waiting for him by his dressing room.

"Bayley stopped by today," Summer said in greeting instead of "Good morning" like a normal person. Dean went to unlock his dressing room only to see that it was already unlocked.

"Sorry, I had to ask the janitor to unlock it. You had a delivery and I didn't want to leave it sitting out."

"A delivery?" Dean asked, confused. "From who?"

"I just said Bayley was here," Summer said, slightly annoyed. "Who else would it be from?"

Dean turned around slowly to look at Summer and she gave him an apologetic look. "Sorry. I'm just… not having the best day."

"Come on, sweetheart," Dean said as he entered the dressing room, motioning Summer to follow him inside. "I'm supposed to be the angry one. You want me to go down to Starbucks and grab you one of those sweet coffee things to cheer you up?"

Summer smiled, finally. "I'm not in the mood."

Dean was about to reply, but the delivery caught his eye and he halted his speech. On his vanity was a fancy-looking wooden container with a note attached to it. Dean frowned and he opened the container to see rows of little stuffed tomatoes like the ones Roman had at his party.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Dean asked with a smirk as he picked up the handwritten note.

_Don't worry, these aren't stuffed with snails again. It's just some expensive cheese or something._

_My chef said you should like it if you liked the snails._

_\- Roman_

At the very end of the note, under Roman's signature, was a number. Roman actually wrote down his phone number for Dean and then made assistant deliver it to his job.

This could not be happening.

"This looks so fancy, I don't even want to eat it," Dean said as he pocketed the note. He will probably go home and put it right next to the invitation to the party that sat on his dresser.

"Seems like Roman's really taken with you," Summer muttered. "He made Bayley drive two hours to deliver that."

"Wow. Fuck." Dean said. He felt a pang of guilt. The next time he saw her, he was going to offer to buy her a drink. Lord knows the poor girl needed one working for Roman. He probably had her deliver romantic gestures once a day.

Right now, however, Dean had to deal with his Summer and her sour mood. "Ok, what's the matter? You wanna talk about it? We can't have you sulking all over the place, ok? You're _Summer_."

"It's stupid," Summer said, glancing down to toy with her chunky designer bracelet. "You're literally going to call me stupid."

"Try me."

Summer's frown deepened. "Are you… sleeping with Roman?"

Dean froze and stared at Summer for a long time before choking out, "What?"

"Like, do you guys have some secret affair nobody knows about?"

"Are you… Have you lost your mind?" Dean asked, chuckling dryly.

"There are rumors," Summer said, folding her arms. "And now he's making his assistant travel for two hours to bring you food."

"Rumors?" Dean asked, narrowing his eyes. "What rumors?"

"Do you even Google yourself?" Summer asked, her annoyance coming back at full surge now. "Rumors from the party. People are talking about how you and Roman flirted all night. Granted, the only blogs talking about it are the ones that aren't creditable, but still."

"What? No, we didn't! We didn’t flirt…" Dean said with a slightly nervous chuckle. “Summer, I wouldn’t and you know that.”

Summer gave him an unimpressed look before she deflated. "If you're the reason Roman won't ask me out on an actual date then I'm going to murder you."

Dean stared at her as she pouted over the whole ordeal. "Is that why you're upset? Summer, getting involved with Roman is a waste of time. You'll just be another scandal."

Summer looked like she wanted to argue, but in the end, she just agreed with him. "I suppose you're right, Dean."

She got up and made her way over to the dressing room door. Before she left, she paused and turned to look at him for a while before speaking again. "I hope you take your own advice."

Dean sat there for a while before he got up and started to get himself ready.

Damn right he'll take his own advice. He'll never get involved with someone like Roman. Sure, the food was a nice gesture, and the flirting was pretty hot, but nah… Dean didn't like complications and he didn't like cocky actors who thought they could get whatever they wanted.

The note with Roman's number on it was burning a hole in his pocket, though.

 


	3. Chapter 3

Dean honestly didn't know why he expected Summer to take his advice.

He came to work three days after their conversation and was greeted with the sight of a happy Summer, who was definitely on cloud nine. He ignored it for the most part at first because he was in his pre-coffee mood and Summer being happy wasn't groundbreaking news, but as time went on, he became curious.

"What's got you so bouncy?" Dean asked as he took a seat next to her on the couch in their fake living room set.

Summer tilted her head up so the makeup artist touching her up could get proper access to her neck.

"Maybe it's got something to do with this hickey I can't seem to get rid of." He drawled as Summer grinned wider.

"Maybe," She practically sang and Dean scrunched up his nose.

He should have known it was guy related since Summer only really got in super great moods when it came to jewelry and men, and since she wasn't wearing a new sparking piece today…

"Never mind," Dean said as he flipped through his notes for today's episode. "Don't wanna hear about any of that."

And he really didn't. There was nothing Dean found less interesting than stories of sexual escapades he wasn't involved with, _especially_ stories from Summer, who Dean really didn't want to imagine naked despite her overwhelming beauty.

"Suit yourself," Summer replied, and that was the end of that.

They only had a weekly recap and no actual interviews to film, so they got through that day relatively easy and quickly. After a few short hours, Dean was ready to go home and chill for the rest of the day. Maybe hit the gym later and guiltily work off the burger he gotten the night before.

He was on his way to his dressing room when he saw Summer and the few of the makeup artists, hair stylists, and assistants crowded around each other in a circle. They were chatting excitedly about something and Summer sounded slightly frenzied. Dean's nosiness got the better of him.

"What's the commotion about?" he asked as he approached the buzzing group of men and women. As he got closer, he could see that they were all peering at an iPad screen and Dean momentarily thought that a new celebrity scandal had happened judging by everyone's reaction.

"I need to talk to you," Summer said quickly as she grabbed Dean by his jacket and pulled him through the small crowd and into her dressing room, slamming the door shut behind them. It was so abrupt that Dean began to fear that something horrible had happened.

"What's up?" Dean asked as he watched Summer pace back and forth nervously, twisting her phone in her hands.

"So, remember when I asked you if you were seeing Roman and you said you weren't?" Summer asked and Dean nodded, not sure where this was going. "You were telling the truth, right? I mean, I'm not calling you a liar, but… you know, some people like to keep their personal business as that, especially in this industry, and I'm just trying not to unintentionally step on any toes."

Step on any toes? What was Summer talking about?

"I'm really not messing around with Roman, Summer. What's this all about?"

Summer sighed, relieved, and clapped her hands excitedly.

"Roman asked me on a date!" She squealed, jumping up and down in her five-inch stiletto Louboutin's. "Finally!"

The emotion Dean felt at that moment could only be described as disappointment. Still, he said nothing as Summer went on, babbling so quickly and energetically that it was hard for him to keep up.

"- and after dinner, we took a stroll. Paparazzi followed us, and Roman got a little angry, but I didn't mind. They got this picture," Summer said as she shoved the iPad in Dean's face. Sure enough, on the screen was Roman and Summer standing really close on the pier. Roman was giving the camera a bored and annoyed expression, while Summer gave them a bright pageant smile. "It's not a bad picture of me, but I wish I wore something different. All of my friends are going to see this, you know?"

"You don't mind being followed by the paps?" Dean asked when Summer took her iPad back.

"Why would I be?" Summer asked, sounding honestly confused. "I'm out with the hottest man alive. Plus, it's not a big deal. I get my picture taken with other people all the time. It's why I don't leave my apartment without makeup on. You can't be camera shy in this industry."

Dean couldn't relate. Summer was almost a Hollywood Insider veteran and a style icon so she was basically a celebrity on her own. Not as big as Roman, or even the Kardashians, but she still had a big presence on social media, and she got invited to red carpet events as a guest when she wasn't a correspondent. Also, her PR people usually called the paparazzi on her themselves so she was used to getting her picture taken. Dean, on the other hand, only had his picture taken when it was required for work or when he was invited to something. His life was too boring off-screen for people to follow him around, taking pictures of him at grocery stores and shit.

"Summer," Dean started gently. "You know this is temporary, right? I know you like him a lot, but Roman does this all the time. You know that. You report it."

Summer's excitement waned a little and Dean felt like a douchebag, but he wasn't one to beat around the bush.

"We're just having fun, ok?" Summer declared. "It's not serious and I'm not expecting him to settle down or anything."

"Well, alright," Dean shrugged. He wanted to argue, but he decided that Summer was a grown woman capable of making her own decisions. He didn't know why this situation bugged him so much, though. If Summer was ok with whatever she had with Roman being a little fling, what was Dean's issue? Why did he feel so weird?

Summer stood there awkwardly for a while before she stood up straighter and cleared her throat lightly. "Anyway, I've got a lunch date."

"With Roman?" Dean inquired.

"Maybe." Summer said abruptly. "I'll see you later."

"Yeah, ok."

Summer turned on her heels and left, leaving Dean sitting in her overly turquoise and gold dressing room. He could tell she was a little annoyed with him for saying what he said, but he knew that she would eventually forgive him since she wasn't the type to hold a grudge.

He had bigger concerns to worry about, anyway, like the fact that he felt a pang of something that too closely resembled jealousy over Summer and Roman going on a date. Dean didn't understand what was going on. He didn't even _like_ Roman.

Still, though, this wasn't his business and it wasn't really his place to feel any type of way about it. He let it drift from his mind and quickly forgot about it as soon as he occupied himself with other tasks.

* * *

 

Dean didn't see Roman again face to face for another month. He did, however, see him very frequently across various forms of media. With a new critically acclaimed movie out, Dean was seeing Roman everywhere. When he wasn't being forced to report on what Roman was doing or wearing or screwing, he was forced to see him on TV and in magazines.

It was actually quite tiring.

Getting so much Roman content wasn't new, but it annoyed Dean more than it used to, especially now since the fire he and Summer had going dimmed out after just two weeks and they stopped seeing each other, just like he'd predicted.

Surprisingly, though, when Summer had her annual charity event for Gingersnaps, a nonprofit organization for the prevention of animal cruelty and abandonment, she invited Roman. Dean didn't ask Summer what happened between she and Roman, but Summer was only really upset for two or three days before she seemingly got over it. And inviting Roman to her charity event was further proof that she wasn't upset about the abrupt ending of whatever relationship they had going.

That, or she was willing to swallow her bitterness and invite him because he had enormous amounts of cash and star power.

But, like Dean said before, that wasn't his business.

Summer went all out for her charity event this time. Dean had only been to one event since they started working together, but this year was definitely a lot more lavish than the previous, and Summer had received funding from KLMUniversal, so she had access to a bigger budget and more advertising.

Dean was looking at the rescued puppies jumping around in a ball pit when he caught a sight of Bayley talking to someone nearby. Dean didn't think anything of it at first because Summer and Bayley had become friends (or at the very least, good acquaintances) so it wasn't odd too see Bayley there. Dean was just about to go say hi when Roman approached Bayley and nudged her playfully before throwing an arm around her shoulder. Dean watched as Bayley introduced Roman to whoever it was she was talking to and the person immediately shook Roman's hands vigorously, probably excited as hell to meet him.

Dean didn't notice he was staring until Roman caught his eye and cocked his head back like he was shocked to see him there. Dean forced himself not to look away because he'd already been caught staring. If he looked away now, he would look guilty. Instead, he nodded his head in greeting once and watched with slight annoyance as Roman excused himself from his conversation and made his way over to where Dean was standing by the ball pit.

"Wasn't expecting you to be here," Dean said when Roman got close enough.

"Are you kidding?" Roman asked, coming to a stop. "I love animals. I have five dogs."

"I know," Dean replied. "I read it on US Weekly."

Roman only smiled at him and Dean began to feel antsy. What was it about this guy that got under his skin like that?

"Well, if you'll excuse me," Dean said as he got himself together to leave.

Roman ignored him. "Did you like the tomatoes?"

Dean paused. Of course, he liked the damn tomatoes. He ate the whole thing in one sitting when he got home that night. He even kept the bamboo container to reuse (a habit he developed from growing up poor). Dean felt stubborn enough to not admit any of those things to Roman, though.

"They were alright," He said passively.

"Just alright?" Roman inquired. "I was sure you were going to love them."

"I'm not a huge fan of cheese," Dean lied. He actually loved cheese and daily gave thanks to whatever godly entity was out there that he wasn't lactose intolerant.

Roman frowned, but he didn't look too upset. "You could have at least called and thanked me."

Dean scoffed. "Were you really looking forward to my thanks?"

"No," Roman said as he rocked back on his heels and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "But I was looking forward to your call."

Dean felt that flare deep in his stomach again and he pressed down on it, trying to stifle the flames. "Well, thank you for the food, but I didn't want to call. I was afraid I'd give you the wrong idea. Especially since, at the time, you were beginning to get involved with my coworker. It would have been inappropriate."

"Fair enough," Roman said with another one of those careless shrugs. He didn't deny being with Summer, nor did he try to make excuses about it. It was what it was.

As if Dean was saved by the bell, a camera crew interrupted their conversation.

"Can we get a picture of you standing by the puppies in the ball pit, Roman?" The photographer asked.

"Of course," Roman said as he turned forward to face them and pose.

Dean took the presented opportunity to leave. "See ya," he mumbled as he shuffled off quickly before Roman could stop him again, or worse, invite Dean to take a picture with him.

They danced around each other for the majority of the event. Roman was kept busy, holding puppies and posing on and off with Juniper the one-eyed cat and Carlos the rude parrot, while Dean mingled to the best of his ability. But, no matter what they were doing, they always made eye contact and Roman always smirked at him like he knew he was pissing Dean off and turning him on.

It was beyond irritating, but Dean still felt a slight static buzz down his spine whenever their eyes met. Roman just had this way about him - the way he moved, the way he stared right at Dean like he was the most interesting thing around - that just made lust roll under his skin.

Maybe Roman really was everyone's type, at least physically because so far, his personality wasn't the best.

Roman approached him again when the charity event was over and Dean was on his way out. He was accompanied by Bayley who could only manage a polite smile in Dean's direction as she was busy informing some of the people following them that Roman didn't want any more photos taken of him.

"You like basketball?" Roman asked Dean smoothly, somehow managing to ignore the people behind him nearly clamoring for last minute photos and questions.

"Not really," Dean said, distracted, as he watched poor Bayley begin to get irritated as people snapped pictures of Roman anyway despite her protests. "I'm more of a football kinda guy."

"There's a game tonight," Roman said. "You wanna go?"

"Aren't tickets all sold out to those things?" Dean asked, folding his arms. He didn't know much about basketball, but he knew that some important game was being played tonight and that's why traffic was more hellish than usual.

Roman shrugged. "Is that a no, then?"

"Yes," Dean said, sidestepping Bayley who was starting to physically maneuver Roman away from the cameras. "It's a no."

"What about dinner?" Roman asked, not even budging under Bayley's gentle ministrations.

"I'm not going on a date with you," Dean said, wishing Roman would just go so Bayley can get a break. "I thought we already discussed this."

"Who said anything about a date?" The other man replied.

"Roman!" Bayley hissed under her breath as she continued to give a big, fake smile to keep up appearances for the cameras.

"I'm almost done, Bayley. Why don't you go call the car?"

"I'm not leaving you here alone with these hounds!" She whispered. "Because if I do, you're gonna say 'Bayley why did you leave me alone with those hounds?'. Like you always do. You should have brought Big Cass."

"I didn't think I'd need a bodyguard for a charity event for sad, cute animals," Roman mumbled before he turned back to Dean. "So, what do you say to a non-date dinner?"

Dean rolled his eyes feeling pressured because of poor Bayley who was becoming more and more frantic. "Fine," He said as he threw his hands up in the air. "But you're paying. For everything."

"Naturally," Roman said, flashing him a winning smile.

Bayley huffed out a relieved breath as she steered Roman towards the valet with Dean following a few steps behind them. There were more flashes from the cameras, but Dean didn't worry too much about it because, one, these were hired camera men and permitted press and not hounding paparazzi, and two, a lot of people were leaving in the same direction as well, so there was no way anyone would think Dean was leaving with Roman.

Hopefully.

* * *

 

For some reason, Dean expected Bayley to come with them, so he was surprised when Roman had his driver drop her off at her apartment downtown. Before she exited the vehicle, she turned around from the front seat to give Roman a verbal list of things he had to do.

"Please don't stay out too late, you have a meeting at 9am sharp and you can't skip this one. Also, I had the cleaners deliver your suits a few hours ago, please put them in your closet when you get inside and don't leave them for me to do it! And don't forget to take your iron pills, Roman. Remember what Dr. Lewis said?"

Dean watched, mildly humored as Roman just rolled his eyes and agreed to do all of her reminders. When she was satisfied, she left the car and jogged up to her apartment building, leaving just the two of them on their not-a-date.

Roman had his driver drop them off at some fancy place that Dean couldn't pronounce. When they arrived, Roman was greeted as a regular and was immediately taken to a table on the upstairs balcony, which was completely empty.

"You know," Dean said as they sat down and were presented with menus and a wine list. "This is feelin' a lot like a date, despite the fact that we agreed it wasn't."

Roman grinned and looked down at the wine menu. "What makes you feel like it's a date?"

"Well," Dean started, looking around the empty balcony. "For starters, we're on a secluded balcony that's completely lit up by candles."

Roman hummed, still not looking up. "Would you rather we sit with everyone else and get stared at the entire time? Because we can do that."

"No," Dean deadpanned.

"Me either." Roman said as he put down his wine menu. "Also, I like the quiet. Now we can talk without an audience and I get to listen to that delectable voice of yours insult me in peace."

Dean sighed. "Along with the no-date rule, let's add no flirting as well."

"Why?" Roman asked. "Does it bother you?"

"No-"

Roman raised an eyebrow and leaned closer to whisper with mock horror, as if anyone else was within earshot. "Am I barking up the wrong tree?"

Dean grinned at that. "You aren't."

Roman sat back in his chair and smiled at Dean, his teeth looking slightly illuminous in the dim setting. The waiter came by to offer them some water and take their drink orders. Roman got some wine for himself and he correctly guessed that Dean wanted a beer. When the waiter left again, Roman spoke up.

"So, Dean, how does someone like you end up working at Hollywood Insider?"

Dean placed his elbows on the table, very much aware that it was bad manners to do so, and leaned closer. "What do you mean by 'someone like me'?"

"Well, you seem to have very little patience for all things Hollywood," Roman explained. "You don't seem like the type of person that would gravitate to that kind of work."

"I started there on an internship and unintentionally worked my way up. They kept offering me promotions and new positions and I wanted a great resume and more money." Dean said, pausing to sip his water. "Apparently, my attitude tests well with the network's audience, which happens to be females in the 18-35 demographic."

"Are you sure it's just not the looks?" Roman joked. "I mean, besides that, I can see the appeal. People tend to love a bit of arrogance and the whole ‘bad boy’ thing."

"Is that why they like you?" Dean shot back.

"Oh, definitely."

Dean rolled his eyes, but at this point, he had witnessed Roman's cockiness and blatant unapologetic self-assertive attitude many times, so his answer wasn't a shock. At least he was being honest.

The waiter returned with their drinks and asked if they were ready to order. Roman was, but Dean wasn't so he told Roman to surprise him. Roman rambled off the name of some unfamiliar appetizer and got steak for the both of them, which Dean was content with.

"You seem like a burger guy, but they don't serve burgers here." Roman said as the waiter made a hasty exit.

"You're absolutely right," Dean agreed. "I will take a well-made burger over almost anything."

"You should try Surfer Shack in Santa Barbara," Roman said excitedly. "Best goddamn Hawaiian burgers in Cali. I tell everyone I know about them. I'm such a frequent customer that they have my picture on the wall."

Dean smiled. "Lots of people have your picture on their walls."

"Touché," Roman agreed.

Just then, Roman's phone chimed and he fished it out of his pocket. "Excuse me," he said as he unlocked it and read whatever was on the screen. After a few seconds, he smiled and put his phone away again. "That was Bayley with more of her gentle parental threats."

"I hope you pay her enough," Dean said, grinning at Roman from across the table. "I feel like her job is like wrangling an overexcited toddler."

Roman threw his head back and laughed. "Bayley gets paid a lot more than average. Trust me. I take care of the people closest to me."

"Well that's…" Dean paused and tried to find the right word. "Admirable."

"She deserves it. She was the only assistant to last more than two weeks, and here she is, still here two years later."

"I can't imagine how resilient she is," Dean chuckled dryly. "Working for you for two years sounds like hell."

"You know, Dean, I'm really not as bad as you think I am."

"Maybe," Dean said. "Your life just seems pretty hectic, that's all."

"Actually, it's quite simple." Roman insisted. "Like you, I don't like complications."

"I don't know how anyone can have three girlfriends in a month and claim to not like complications."

"They're not girlfriends, Dean." Roman corrected before he sniffed his wine and sipped it. "I'm just having a bit of fun while I'm still young."

Dean rolled his eyes. "Do the girls know they're just a bit of fun?"

"I let everyone I get involved with know that I'm not looking for something serious. If they are, we part ways, no hard feelings." Roman said.

"Are you sure?"

"Am I sure about what?"

"That there are no hard feelings?"

(art by [darius](http://reinmeka.tumblr.com/post/162452109967/i-really-rushed-through-coloring-because-i-have))

Roman paused for a while and seemed to consider it. "I suppose there's no way of knowing 100% of the time if someone will be upset when the fun comes to an end, but I feel like if I clearly let someone know what they're getting into before they jump into my bed, I can't see how that will be my fault."

"You can't deny that it's kinda skeevy, though." Dean said. "And, you may not be doing it intentionally, but surely you see why you have a reputation of treating woman as disposable."

"I feel like people care more about my reputation than I do." Roman said, almost pensively. "Look, who I hang out with is between me, whoever the person is, JoJo, and my PR team. If people feel some type of way about me being with a lot of women, that's their problem."

Roman paused when the waiter came back to deliver their appetizers and refill the glasses. When he was finished, Roman thanked him and picked up where he left off.

"Also, don't forget that all of fun I've been having has been mutual. And don't for one second think that some women aren't only with me because of who I am and what I can do for them."

"Well, I don't doubt that." Dean muttered as he picked around his appetizer. He didn't know what it was, but it smelled delicious. Still, he was kinda nervous to try it since the whole snails debacle.

"So, if my partners and I are having fun, what's the big deal?" Roman asked, unfolding a napkin and stuffing it in his shirt. "Why does it matter to you guys?"

"Me?" Dean scoffed. "I don't care, Roman."

"Well, it's your job to care." Roman said as he picked up his fork and started to dig into… whatever it was on his plate. "I think you can do much better, by the way."

"You don't even know me," Dean drawled.

Roman ignored him and took a bite of his food. He closed his eyes to savor it, letting out the most sinful moan Dean had ever heard. Dean wondered if it was intentional or if the food was really that good. "You've gotta try this, Dean."

"What is it?" Dean asked as he looked down at his plate again.

"It's called Phyllo Purses," Roman said as he took another big bite and chewed slowly. "It's made with spinach, squash, and feta. It's my guilty pleasure."

Dean stabbed one of the purses with his fork and sliced it in half. He brought it to his mouth slowly and took a bite. He chewed hesitantly at first, getting his pallet used to the taste and Roman watched him closely.

"It's good, right?" He asked as Dean swallowed.

"That's actually fucking delicious," Dean exclaimed, going in for another bite.

Roman's smile widened and he looked oddly proud that he'd chosen the correct thing for Dean. Dean looked down at his plate because Roman's goofy smile made him feel too warm.

The ate in comfortable silence for a while until Dean finished his purses and Roman had two remaining on his plate.

"Oh, you didn't try it with the sauce," Roman said as he watched Dean's empty plate. "Here, you have to try it." Roman grabbed Dean's fork and used it to pick up one of his purses before he dipped it in the deep red sauce that came with it. Dean watched as Roman pushed the fork towards him.

"What am I, a baby?" Dean asked, cocking his eyebrow.

"Come on," Roman said. "Indulge me."

Dean rolled his eyes for what felt like the millionth damn time that day. "Indulge you? You know, for this being a not-a-date, you really are treating it like one."

"What, you don't feed your friends when you hang out with them?" Roman asked.

"You're annoying."

"Don't leave me hangin'."

Dean couldn't believe he was doing this bullshit.

He tipped forward and took a huge bite of the purse and pulled his fork out of Roman's hand with his teeth. Roman watched, humored, as Dean put his fork back on his plate and chewed aggressively.

"You know this is a date, right?" Roman asked as he rest his chin on the palm of his hand and grinned at Dean across the table.

"It is not," Dean insisted.

Roman didn't reply. He just continued to stare a Dean until the other man's cheeks began to burn. Dean wasn't shy, nor did he have a problem with being looked at, but when it was Roman doing the staring… He didn't know why, but it made him feel odd. It made him flush and feel hot.

The waiter came back with their steaks shortly after and they ate in silence again for a while. There was a question Dean wanted to ask, but he didn't know if it was going to overstep any boundaries. Still, though, Dean wasn't one to let his curiosity go unsated. He was a journalist through and through.

"Can I ask you something personal, Roman?"

Roman paused from cutting this his steak and looked up. "Depends on how personal it is."

Dean cleared his throat because it was personal as hell, but he pressed on. "You obviously like men. Are you… gay? Are the women a cover-up?"

Roman grinned and continued to cut his steak. "No, they're not cover-ups. I love women. However, I do sleep with men, too, but just to a lesser extent. JoJo and my PR team are really good at keeping it out of the news."

"So, you go both ways?"

"I go all ways," Roman answered pointedly. "Whatever way I want to go."

"Me too," Dean said, relaxing a little at Roman's easy tone. "I mean… it's been a while since I've dated a guy. Not since college."

"I've never dated another guy," Roman said. "I'm not in the closet or anything. Everyone close to me knows. It's just… my career, you know? I can't flaunt it. I wouldn't want to enter a relationship with someone and hide him away."

"I'm guessing JoJo wouldn't want you to tell me all this," Dean said before taking a bite of his steak.

"I trust you," Roman replied, meeting Dean's eyes. "Also, if you tell anyone, I can guarantee she will make your life a living hell."

Dean smirked at that. "I'd never do that to someone. I'm not that much of an asshole."

"You'd be surprised how many people lose their morals when Radar Online or TMZ offers them 5k."

"I make enough money," Dean said, talking with his mouth full. "And since we're friends and all now, I'll be getting free dinner from now on."

"Is that a hint that you want to go on more dates?" Roman asked. "Because I'd love to take you on a few more."

"How much more before you get tired of me?" Dean asked, a little suspicious. "Hypothetically speaking, of course."

"Oh, I don't know," Roman smirked. "We can just see where this goes."

"There's no 'this'." Dean said, grinning despite himself.

"You're a master of playing hard to get," Roman sighed. "I'm almost to the point of giving up."

Dean gave him an exaggerated pout. "Don't. It's kinda fun telling you 'no'."

Roman took a sip of his wine and hummed deep in his throat. "That turn you on? Having someone chase after you?"

Dean couldn't lie. It was a confidence boost to have some hot, attractive actor trying to get in his jeans. Was it a turn on, though? He wasn't sure. The beer was warming him up, though, and he felt like teasing Roman because he'd be damned if he allowed Roman to make him sweat and he didn't return the favor.

"Yes," Dean said, rubbing the rim of his beer over his bottom lip. "Does it turn you on having to work harder than you normally do?

Roman let out a quick breath that was kinda like a small laugh and his eyes travelled down to Dean's lip. "Yes. But only because I'll enjoy it that much more when I finally get you where I want you." His eyes snapped back up to Dean's eyes and the burning hot intensity in his gaze made heat pool under Dean’s skin. "You know, food always taste better when you work hard for it."

Dean gulped the last mouthfuls of his beer and leaned back in his chair. "I'll think about it."

Roman leaned back as well and licked his lips. "What are the chances that you'll have an answer by tonight?"

"Fuck you," Dean said, chuckling. "You give guys an inch and they try to take a mile. You should be happy I'm even considering it."

"Maybe you're right," Roman agreed. "Tonight wouldn't be good anyway. I've got that meeting at 9. I've got to get some sleep, and something tells me you're an all-nighter."

"You know me so well already," Dean drawled, sitting up straight as the waiter came back to see if they needed anything.

Roman sent him away for the check because neither he or Dean wanted desert. Dean was going to be greedy and make Roman buy him a fancy brownie or something, but he figured he'd get one next time. After all, Roman _did_ offer more dinners in the future.

* * *

 

Dean went to work the next day with a slight spring in his step. He wasn't singing musicals or anything like that, but usually, before he had his black coffee and bagel from craft services, Dean was a little unapproachable. Today, he said good morning to everyone he made eye contact with and wasn't even as annoyed as he would have been when Sasha told him that they were finally interviewing Alexa Bliss (for real this time).

Dean was walking towards Summer's dressing room with the last chocolate donut from craft services that he saved just for her when Summer nearly bumped into him on her way out. She looked a little annoyed when she saw him, but he _did_ almost step on her shoes and Summer held those close to her heart.

"My ray of sunshine," Dean said as he extended the donut like a gift. "Look what I snagged before the interns could get their hands on it."

"I'm on a diet," Summer said, folding her arms stubbornly. She made a show of turning her nose up and everything.

"Oh," Dean mumbled before he took a bite of the donut. "I had to practically wrestle someone for it, but ok."

Summer's annoyance seemed to dissipate for a while and she gave him a small smile before she sighed. "Hey, um, so I appreciate you coming to my event yesterday."

"No problem!" Dean said. "Anything for the puppies."

Summer nodded and rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. "So, there's this stupid rumor going around that you left with Roman last night."

Dean's mouth went dry and suddenly, it became a chore to swallow the damn donut.

"A rumor that I what?" He asked stupidly.

"That you left with Roman," Summer repeated, her irritation coming back. "Which isn't a big deal or anything. It's just this paired with the other rumors about you guys flirting at the after party… People are starting to talk."

Dean cleared his throat because he felt like a nervous lump was forming in his throat. "I, uh, -"

"And I kept saying to myself that there was no way you were secretly going out with Roman. Not after you specifically tried to dissuade me from going on a date with him few weeks ago." Summer interrupted. "’Dean wouldn't be a hypocrite,’ I said to myself."

"I'm not secretly going out with Roman!" Dean said loudly, and then lowered his voice as people bustled past them. He took Summer's arm and gently pulled her into a secluded corner. "Look, we went to dinner last night, ok?"

Summer pulled her arm out of Dean's hold. "That's why you're so happy today!"

"It wasn't a date!" Dean said, and it sounded like a lie to his own ears. "We just went out for some food. He said he would pay. You know I like free food!"

"I can't believe you would lie to me!" Summer whisper-yelled. She pointed an accusing finger at Dean and jabbed his chest with her manicured nail. "I know you don't consider me a friend since you go around telling everyone 'oh I only have one friend here in Cali blah blah blah', but I consider you a friend. I just think it's screwed up how you would screw around with Roman Reigns-"

"I'm not screwing him!" Dean hissed. "And you are my friend. We just… he asked me out ok?"

Summer folded her arms and tapped her foot impatiently. "And?"

"I don't know, it's confusing!"

Summer scowled and Dean flinched because Summer's face wasn't made for negative expressions.

"Well, I'll give you some advice that you gave me," Summer leaned closer as if she was going to tell Dean a secret. "You're only temporary."

Dean didn't even get to reply because Summer was gone in a flash of blonde hair, leaving only the scent of her expensive perfume behind.

"Morning, Mr. Ambrose!" One of the assistants said as he handed Dean his notes for today's episode.

Dean grabbed the notes, ignored him, and walked straight to his dressing room, pushing the door open harder than necessary. He knew he should feel bad for being rude to the poor assistant, but he felt like crap and he felt guilty.

Once inside, Dean sighed and threw the half-eaten donut in the nearby trashcan. He didn't feel like eating it anymore.

Well, there went his good mood.

 


	4. Chapter 4

Dean went on three more dates with Roman after the initial non-date. So, technically speaking, they'd been on four dates, but Dean was being stubborn about the first date not being an actual date, so…

It was three dates.

At first, Dean tried really, really hard to act like Roman had no appeal beyond his looks, but around the second (third) date, he couldn't deny it. Roman was charismatic as fuck and he liked it. He was _attracted_ to it. Roman just had this appeal, this sort of air that clung to him like a good scent. The way he spoke to Dean, the way he flirted with him, the way he took all of Dean's criticisms with ease and nonchalance... It all got Dean excited.

The more Dean spoke to him, the more it became glaringly obvious that Roman was not just a pretty face who got everything handed to him. Sure, Roman's famous parents gave him a classic case of nepotism and Roman was initially given opportunities instead of working for them, but there was no denying that Roman actually had substance. He was an amazing actor, that much was undebatable, but he was also insightful and perceptive about what happened around him.

It was quite jarring, especially since Dean had written him off as an aloof, uncaring asshole. Honestly, Roman was still an asshole, but he was _more,_ and Dean actually liked talking to him.

At first, they spoke more over the phone than anything since Roman was extremely busy, promoting stuff or being invited to events and red carpets. Usually, Roman dragged along his flavor of the month with him to said events to show them off, and of course, taking Dean out in public in front of cameras was out of the question. There were already rumors and questions from questionable sites that posted scandalous and usually untrue rumors, so they had to spend time together in private.

Dean didn't mind. Actually, he preferred it this way. Roman was the same person whether there were cameras around or not, so it wasn't like Dean was getting a whole other hidden side of him, but Dean got the opportunity to learn more about him without the bustle of people haggling him for pictures or asking him his opinions on things that didn't have to do with acting at all. Then, of course, there was the whole problem with Roman not being completely "out". Dean would rather _not_ have a leading role in a national scandal, thank you. For the time being, secretive dating, phone conversations, and text messages were completely fine.

* * *

 

One night, about a month and a half after this thing between them started, Roman called Dean to set up another get together, but instead of pitching a new restaurant to him, he asked if he wanted to come over to his place for dinner. Dean considered rejecting the invitation at first because going over Roman's house seemed a little too intimate for his taste. Also, he knew that once he was at Roman's house, he'd most likely cave into his advances and they'd end up having sex. Call Dean a tease, but he really was having fun watching Roman try and try again to get him spread out on his bed. Problem was, his advances were working a little too well and Dean was becoming sexually frustrated and by denying Roman, he was denying himself.

After working out the pros and the cons with Kevin (which was a bad idea because Kevin only berated and ridiculed him for not sleeping with Roman and using him for money and fame), Dean said fuck it and decided to go.

What's the worst that could happen? Worst case scenario was that they had sex and then what? It’s not like Dean would get his heart broken or anything if Roman decided to drop him like a hot potato or something because it wasn’t like Dean was expecting anything more than that.

* * *

 

Roman's home was in Malibu and it took Dean almost two hours to get there from L.A. because of traffic and road work. When he actually pulled up in front of Roman's place, Dean could only gape at how fancy it looked. It wasn't a super big mansion or anything, but it looked expensive as hell. While he wasn't too much into architecture, Dean could appreciate a nicely built home. He'd never wanted a house for himself, even if he made enough to buy his own now if he wanted, but apartments and condos were more to his liking. Still, if he had to buy a home and if he had a budget like Roman's, this is the kind of house he would go for.

It was an aesthetically designed villa that sat across the street from a beautiful scenic beach, so it probably offered amazing views on one of the three balconies. The entire home was made up of Italian limestone that Dean guessed was probably hand carved by a real Italian or something equally extravagant and over the top. As he pulled up to the gate, he could see the large driveway and a big, blue pool with a hot tub attached between the bars.

Dean pushed the buzzer on the gate and a voice came through some small speakers that he hadn't noticed before.

"Yeah?"

Dean cleared his throat. "Uh, it's me. Can you let me in?"

"Who is 'me'?" Roman asked through the intercom.

"You expectin' anyone else? Open the damn gate."

There was a short bark of a laugh followed by a beep before the gate unlatched and opened, allowing Dean access. He drove in and took in his surroundings with embarrassing childlike awe. He saw fancy homes all the time here in California, but he still stared every time. Dean grew up in a shitty one-bedroom apartment in Ohio and when he was younger, he used to look at any fancy home he saw and daydream. He never grew out of that, despite not even wanting a home or the maintenance commitments it came with for himself at the moment.

Dean parked on the driveway and Roman opened his front door and leaned against the doorway with his arms folded across his chest.

"We agreed on 2pm," Roman said as Dean exit his car and began to make his way up the steps.

"I got stuck in traffic," Dean said with a shrug as he came to a stop in front of the other man. He pushed a bottle of wine that he picked up earlier in Roman's chest.

"Wine?" Roman asked, cocking a brow. "I have more than enough wine for both of us, but I appreciate the gesture."

"I heard it was bad manners to come to a dinner party and not bring anything," Dean explained.

Roman grinned and stepped aside so Dean could enter his house. "Come in, Ambrose. Make yourself at home."

The inside of the house was even better than the outside.

"Wow," Dean said as he looked around the large, sun-drenched seating area. "You or your interior decorator has cool taste."

Roman shut the door behind him. "Bought this place as is, man. Don't even know who the hell decorated it. My main home that I did decorate, however, is in Florida. I hope to be back there and out of Cali by the end of the year."

"What's wrong with California?" Dean asked as he followed Roman further into the house. "We got too much press for ya?"

Roman chucked as they entered his shiny kitchen where there were bowls already laid out on the island. "Trust me, they're just as bad in Florida. I think California is too superficial for me. It's good to stay here in moderation, but I've been here since I started filming Martyr last year and I've gone and signed myself up for another film that films here in Cali and then in Canada. I'm stuck here for a while."

"Well, at least you get to retire to this amazing house every night," Dean said as he watched Roman pull some more containers out of his refrigerator.

"I know, right? It's secluded, too. The paps don't know I live here, yet!" Roman exclaimed as he opened one of the bowls to reveal seasoned ground beef. "Someone'll tip them off eventually, though. So, I might as well enjoy it while I can."

"Are you feeding me raw meat for dinner?" Dean asked as he stared down at the ground beef.

"Maybe later," Roman mumbled slyly and Dean scrunched up his nose at the blatantly bad innuendo.

"That why you invited me over here?" He asked, pretending not to know the answer.

"Well, I would be lying if I said that it wasn't one of the reasons," Roman replied, honestly. "But, it's not the only reason. I actually do like our little non-dates."

"The first one was a non-date. These are real dates. I'll give you that."

Roman hummed. "And to answer your question; no. I'm making you some burgers."

"Oh, dude, you're a man after my own heart," Dean said, throwing a hand over his chest.

"You don't say," Roman said as he picked up the bowl with the raw meat and threw an arm around Dean's shoulder. "Come on. Let's head outside."

* * *

 

While he was handling the grill, Roman explained to Dean that he was shit on the stove, but a boss on the grill. He explained that he never learned how to cook because he didn't need to, but his father grew up learning how to grill food, so naturally, he taught Roman as well.

Dean had to admit, Roman was good. And he was a burger addict, so he knew a good burger from a bad burger. They ate about six bacon and cheddar burgers between them. It was ridiculous and Dean knew he'd have to hit the gym extra hard tomorrow afternoon before filming, but he didn't care. He felt good.

He was beyond full when he and Roman made their way up to the upstairs balcony with his cheap wine to kick back and stare out at the beach. The sun had begun to set and Dean began to feel lazy with two glasses of wine in his system and the burgers settling in his stomach.

"I'm so jealous that you get this view whenever you want," Dean said as he kicked off his shoes and threw his legs up on the extremely comfortable chaise lounge.

"Where do you stay?"

"In L.A." Dean grumbled. "I have a tiny view of the water, but it's not all that. Not as much as this. I'm planning on moving soon. Maybe to San Francisco."

Roman snorted. "Yeah, something tells me you'll hate San Francisco."

"You know," Dean said as he turned to look at Roman. "My best friend said the same thing. I kinda want to prove you guys wrong, but it'll be a bad idea. My job is in L.A. I really, truly wanna live in New York, though."

"You could always just quit your job and move there." Roman said.

Dean rolled his eyes. "Easy for you to say. I can't just quit my job. And besides, I like my job."

"Did you really go to college to work in entertainment journalism? Do you really care what dress Mischa Barton wore to some premiere?"

"Nobody cares what Mischa Barton is doing with herself these days. It's not the early 2000s anymore," Dean said dismissively. "And to answer your question: no. But, I kinda like my job, ok? Sure, it's annoying sometimes, but I'm given a higher line to cross these days."

"Like grilling celebrities about their personal lifestyle choices?"

Dean grinned. "What do you want, an apology?"

"Well, I personally think I deserve one."

"I'd rather hurl myself into traffic than apologize for calling you out."

Roman laughed and set his wine on the glass table between them. He turned to face Dean head on, his face full of humor and heat. He licked his plump bottom lip and Dean's eyes tracked the motion. "How about a kiss, then?"

Dean bit his own lip in an attempt to hide his grin before he sat back against the lounge. "Sure, dude, but I'm not getting' up. M'too full."

After a few seconds of hesitation, Roman got up and stretched before he took a few steps over to where Dean was splayed out. He crouched down and wasted no time leaning in to kiss him without much preamble. Dean met him half way, despite his act of nonchalance, and he moaned softly into the kiss as Roman's goatee rubbed against his face.

Dean hadn't kissed anyone in a while and he'd be lying to himself if he said he didn't miss it. And, damn, Roman was a good kisser. Dominating and aggressive just like Dean liked, and he had a hard ass time trying to keep up. He was just starting to get really into it when Roman abruptly pulled back, leaving Dean flushed and panting.

"Wow," Roman sighed, huffing out a sharp laugh.

"Good as you imagined?" Dean asked, shakily, his voice still holding an air of cockiness, however.

"Better," Roman said before he darted forward for another kiss.

This one was needier, more frantic, as if all the teasing they had put each other through since the interview had finally caught up with them. Dean sat up and his hands wrapped around Roman's neck under his long hair and he tried to pull him closer, tried to get more physical contact without actually getting naked.

Dean wanted to blame the wine and his lack of partners for the last year for his neediness and slight desperation, but deep down, he knew he couldn't. This had been building for a while, and Dean finally felt ready to just go with it. Cons be damned.

"We doin' this?" Roman asked after he pulled back again and pressed his face into Dean's neck, licking against Dean's pulse point and making him squirm.

"Yeah," Dean said, before he passed a quick tongue over his raw and slick lips. He ran his hands under Roman's t-shirt, touching his sides and moving up to touch his defined chest. "Fuck, take this off, man!"

Roman pulled back and did what Dean requested, holding his eye contact as he pulled his t-shirt over his head. Fuck, Roman was really, really good looking. Even more so while disheveled and up close and personal.

Dean watched, transfixed, as Roman's hand went down to his jeans.

"I'll show you mine if you show me yours," Roman teased as he opened his jeans.

Shit. He didn't have to tell Dean twice.

Dean quickly got rid of his own white tee and dropped it on the floor next to the lounge. He held Roman's intense gaze as he started to unbuckle his belt, slowly as if he was putting on a show. The lust and heat between them made him feel smug and full of himself, and honestly, Dean was never a tease, but there was something about the way Roman looked at him like he was _it_ , as if he was the hottest fucking guy on Earth, and that made Dean want to draw everything out and make it almost tortuous.

Roman ended up being right about how being a tease turned Dean on.

"I was hoping to get this started by tonight," Roman said impatiently.

"Well, if you're in a rush, why don't you help me?" Dean shot back.

Roman rolled his eyes and crotched down again. He batted Dean's stalling hands away and got two fistfuls of his jeans before they were being yanked down. Dean barely had time to lift his hips before his jeans were pulled off unceremoniously, leaving him in his boxer-briefs.

"Jeez, big guy." Dean chuckled. "Impatient, are we?"

"Mm, very," Roman admitted before he got up and swung a leg over the lounge so he could straddle Dean's thighs.

Dean barely had time to laugh before Roman pressed closer to him and brought their lips together again. Roman ground his hips down and, fuck, Dean could feel his dick pressing against him.

"You packing the Loch Ness monster in there?" Dean asked as he pulled back to look down at the tent in Roman's jeans.

Roman laughed and pulled back to watch as Dean's ran his hands down his chest and stopped at his opened zipper. Dean bit his lip before he reached inside of his boxers and took a hold of Roman's cock. Roman hissed and his hips jutted forward slightly as Dean stroked him a few times before taking him out of his jeans.

"I wanna blow you," Dean said conversationally as he stared at Roman's impressive cock in his hand. "Get up."

Roman didn't say anything but he smirked and rose up until he was standing again. He took a few steps forward and Dean sat up straighter until he was at eye-level with Roman's waist.

Dean jacked Roman's cock a few times, sizing it up like an opponent and the thought made him want to laugh. Maybe it was the beer and wine. "I'm a bit out of practice, so if I'm bad, just don't mention it. Keep it to yourself."

Roman laughed. "They say there's no such thing as a bad blowjob. Just don't bite me."

"I'm tempted," Dean said before he leaned forward to lick a teasing line up his length. Roman moaned deep in his throat and his hand came up to tangle itself in Dean's hair before he seemed to catch himself. He pulled his hand away, but Dean caught it and lead it back. "You're good. I don't mind a little hair-pulling. Just don't go crazy and give me a headache."

"Yeah, yeah," Roman said dismissively, then he hissed as Dean took him into his mouth.

It wasn't easy, ok? Roman was not exactly… uh… petite. He wasn't even _above average_ , but Dean was not a quitter. Not even when his jaw screamed at him for abusing it by trying to force Roman's thick dick down his throat. Dean pulled back and licked around the head and Roman's hand tightened in his hair, letting him know that he was doing a decent job, despite the fact that he was feeling slightly overwhelmed.

Dean used his hand to stroke what he couldn't fit inside his mouth and really got to work, dusting off his mental skill book and giving Roman what he thought was the blowjob of his life. For a while, Roman was silent and Dean's confidence was waning, but after he twisted his hand at the base and dragged his tongue across the tip, Roman's hips surged forward.

"Fuck, Dean!"

Dean pulled off with an obscene pop and glared up at Roman, while still stroking him lightly. "Dude, shh. You have neighbors."

"They're not even close-"

"Also," Dean interrupted him. "Now that I think about it, maybe we shouldn't be outside."

"It's fine," Roman said as he tried to maneuver Dean's mouth back to its previous task. "Nobody can see us up here."

Dean hummed and mouth the side of Roman's cock for a while before he pulled off again, causing the other man to groan. "I'd rather get fucked on a huge ass bed and not on this chair thing."

"It's called a lounge."

"Whatever, dude."

Roman sighed. "I was having so much fun."

"You'll have so much more fun when we're both naked and comfortable on your bed." Dean said as he braced his hands on Roman's thighs to get him to move back so he could get up. "Let's go."

Roman pouted – actually _pouted_ – before he scooted back, allowing Dean to roll off the lounge and stand up. Dean was still full and still feeling lazy, so Roman had to manhandle him inside. When Dean didn't move fast enough, Roman smacked his ass hard and came up really close behind him. "You know, for all the talk of being an energetic all-nighter, you're pretty sluggish."

Dean grinned as Roman's hand came up to wrap around him from behind. "Don't challenge me. I love proving people wrong and if you keep talking trash, you may get the all-nighter you desperately want."

"I'm counting on it," Roman said into his neck as he maneuvered them into the upstairs sitting area. He paused and turned Dean around again before he put his hands down his underwear and cupped his cock. "Let me give you a little incentive."

Dean groaned and his eyes fluttered shut. His hips rocked up against Roman's hands for a while until the other man pulled his hands away and started to get rid of his underwear instead. It took some awkward maneuvering because they'd started to kiss again, both of them trying to get the other naked while not willing to break the kiss.

"Fuck the bedroom," Roman said when Dean was finally completely naked. He pushed Dean down across the back of the nearest couch and followed him down, mouthing at the side of his neck.

Dean was half out of his mind with lust, but he still remembered the necessities.

"Condoms?" He panted out as Roman pressed up hot and heavy against his back. "You got condoms, big guy?"

Roman made a noncommittal noise behind him as he started sucking on the back of his neck. Dean dug his nails into the suede couch beneath him and quickly forgot about whatever he was just asking for until Roman pulled away.

"Stay there," Roman said as he walked backwards, his jeans hanging off his hips lewdly. "Fuck, don't move."

"Where'm I gonna go?" Dean teased. "Hurry up."

The minute Roman disappeared, Dean let out a harsh breath. He couldn't believe he was doing this. He was going to sleep with Roman Reigns. _The_ Roman Reigns. Two months ago, he could barely stand to be in the same room with the guy.

He had a fleeting moment of ‘Oh god oh god what the fuck’, but it quickly passed when Roman came back. He was naked as well now, and he had a few items in his hands. He paused at the archway and tsked disapprovingly when he saw that Dean was facing him instead of laying over the back of the couch with his ass sticking up like he requested. "I thought I told you not to move?"

"I was feeling awkward," Dean said. "Come here."

Roman stepped forward and he tossed the box of condoms on the sofa as Dean stood up straight so he could get his hands on his unbelievable body again.

"Lift your leg," Roman said as he uncapped the lube in his hands and poured some on his fingers. Dean lifted his right leg and shifted back a little so Roman would have better access. It was an odd position, but both he and Roman seemed determined to make it work.

"You ready?" Roman said before he pressed a quick kiss to Dean's chest.

"Yeah, c'mon," Dean panted.

Roman dropped the lube somewhere on the floor before he used his clean hand to push Dean's leg further back. Dean closed his eyes and waited impatiently until he felt Roman's finger brush against his entrance a few times before pushing in. Dean keened and pushed his hips down, trying to get more of Roman's fingers in him, despite the mild discomfort.

"Give me another finger," Dean whined impatiently. Roman chuckled, but Dean ignored it because he was soon getting the other finger he asked for and that sweet, dragging burn that came with it. "Yeah, just like that."

Roman was very skilled with his fingers and he found Dean's spot in no time, pressing against it incessantly until it was almost like a torture. Dean felt like his skin was on fire despite the coolness of the room when Roman added a third finger, fucking him almost roughly with them as Dean groaned and cursed.

"I think you're ready," Roman said as he pressed his fingers in one more time before he pulled them out in one swift motion. "Fuck, look at you. You're gone already and I haven't even given you my dick yet."

"I'm gonna punch you right in the mouth if you don't shut the hell up and get inside me," Dean all but barked, unashamed of his own desperation.

Roman smiled and didn't say anything as he picked up one of the condoms that had spilled out of the box and opened it with his teeth before he rolled it on expertly and threw the wrapper behind him. He then bent down to pick up the lube before he poured some more in his hand and stroked himself a few times. Dean watched him as Roman crowded up against him again and hooked one of his knees around his waist before he started to guide his cock inside of him.

Dean hissed at the burn and stretch, and when Roman's movements started to falter, his hands scrambled at his back before he caught him by the back of his neck. "Don't stop. It's fine," he assured him as he stroked the hair at the base of Roman’s neck lightly.

"I have no intention of stopping," Roman said as he continued to push in. "Just wanted you to get used to me a little."

"I'll let you know if it feels anything short of amazing. Just keep going."

Dean brought their lips together when Roman was all the way in. He moaned into the kiss when they started to rock together, awkwardly and slowly at first, but quickly gaining momentum and a rhythm that worked. It wasn't long until Roman was fucking him, really banging into him, the couch moving little by little across the white rug on the wooden floors. In his hazy mind, Dean could hear the noises filling up the room; the sound of their lips slicking together messily, Roman rumbling deep in his throat, his own needy whines as Roman started to hit it _just right_.

It was fucking perfect.

He got his hands between them and Roman pulled back and watched as Dean started to jerk himself sloppily, his toes curling as the other man continued to fuck him stupid.

"Fuck, you're amazing," Roman gritted out as he stared at Dean like he was getting his own personal show. Dean wasn't even trying to jerk off sexily or put on a display. He was too keyed up, already too close to coming. "Are you close? You gonna come for me?"

Dean nodded and stroked himself faster as Roman continued to thrust, his cock brushing that spot inside him every so often, making stars burst behind his eyelids. "Mm, fuck, Roman. Harder, go harder. I'm almost there."

"Yeah?" Roman asked before he braced one hand on the couch and used the other to pull Dean closer to meet his thrusts.

"Fuck, that's it!" Dean cried as Roman's hands dug bruises into his thigh. "Fuck! I'm-"

Dean's orgasm so was intense that he could barely breathe as it wracked through him in intense waves. He tipped back, forgetting that there was nothing back there to keep him from falling, but thankfully, Roman caught him, still somehow managing to keep his thrusts up and precise enough.

Dean stroked out the last of his orgasm and absentmindedly used his messy hand to grab at Roman's suede couch and the other to grab Roman's hips because he had to hold onto _something_.

"Come on, Reigns, I wanna feel you lose it," Dean said as he lifted himself up to rest his cheek against Roman's. He kissed his neck, sucking the sweat there and leaving marks because he suddenly felt a hot spark of possession. He bit Roman's ear and moved his hand from his hips to grab his ass, encouraging him on.

"Fuck!" Roman groaned before his thrusts got jerky and he slammed into Dean a few more times before he sagged against him.

Dean squeezed his ass again and laughed quietly in Roman's ear as the other man came down from his orgasm.

"Damn, I'm catching a cramp." Dean said after they stood there for a while, getting their heart rates back in order.

"Yeah, this wasn't the best position." Roman said with a wry smile as he stepped back and dropped Dean's leg. "Should have took you from the back like I was going to at first." He reached down to pull himself out of Dean gently before he pulled off the condom.

Dean stretched his leg and heard some bones crack as Roman turned to disappear down the hallway. He came back a minute later to see Dean still in the same position, rolling his neck from side to side.

"My bedroom is upstairs, but there's a guest bedroom on this floor if you don't feel like going that far."

"Guest room," Dean muttered as he got up gingerly, testing his ability to walk with his various aches and pains. He knew it will feel a lot worse in the morning, but it was worth it.

Roman caught him and steered him towards the guest room down the hall, pausing once in a while to kiss him and run his hands over Dean's slick, exposed skin. When they got to the bedroom, Dean couldn't really look around because only a little lamp in the corner was turned on. Roman pushed him down on the king-sized bed and climbed over him, kissing up Dean's sticky, sweaty chest before he kissed his lips. Dean's cock started to perk up in interest again as Roman bent down to suck his nipples.

"You wanna go again?" Dean asked, carding a hand through Roman's inky black hair and stroking another up his tattooed arm. He made a mental note to ask Roman about what his tattoo meant. Sure, Roman probably spoke about his tattoo lots of times to magazines and interviewers, but Dean wanted to hear about it directly from him now that he actually cared to know. He didn't care before.

"Yeah, give me five minutes." Roman said as he continued to make it his personal mission to kiss Dean everywhere. His hands went down to Dean's thigh and he massaged it lightly for a while. "You still got a cramp?"

"No."

"Good," Roman said as he rolled over on his back and smiled in the near-darkness. "Because I want you to ride me."

He patted his thigh and said, "Hop on," and Dean grinned as he climbed on top and settled down, grinding his cock against Roman's.

He did promise him an all-nighter, after all.

* * *

 

Dean woke up to the sound of Roman talking on the phone. He sounded slightly agitated, but in his sleep muddled mind, Dean really didn't pay it any attention as he woke up in stages. Sun was shining directly on his face so he rolled over and buried himself under the duvet. He felt too comfortable to even consider moving. He never really saw the need to invest in overly expensive sheets, but as he rolled around on Roman's bed he finally got the appeal. It felt nice on his bare skin.

"Hey, you up?" Roman asked, and Dean poked his head over the covers and saw Roman standing there, completely dressed, with damp hair.

"Barely," Dean said as he blocked the sun from his eyes. Roman grinned down at him before walking over to the window and closing his blinds.

“I gotta jet,” Roman said as he stared down at his phone. “Totally forgot that I have this thing I gotta go to. Bayley is scolding me.”

“When is she not scolding you?” Dean joked with a light chuckle.

Roman didn’t reply. Instead, Dean watched as he started texting distractedly. He felt like he was being dismissed; as if this was his cue to get the fuck out. An awkward feeling came over him, which was rare because awkwardness was against Dean character. Not knowing what else to do, he sat up.

“Well, I should get going,” He said, and Roman finally looked at him again. “Not trying to overstay my welcome.”

“Nah, man, it’s cool,” Roman said with a wave of his hand. “I mean, if you wanna split, then that’s fine, but you don’t have to leave. I’ll be back in a little bit.”

Dean was taken aback. “You want me to stay here? In your house? While you’re gone?”

Roman shrugged and pocketed his phone. He walked over to Dean and braced his arms on the bed, crowding him up against the headboard. “We’re gonna see each later anyway, you might as well stay here.” He dipped his hand under the duvet and ran it over Dean’s leg before squeezed his thigh suggestively. “Might as well keep my bed warm and wait for me, yeah?”

Dean scoffed and pushed Roman’s hand away. “What, you think I’m your bitch?”

“Don’t talk dirty to me when I gotta leave,” Roman said as he leaned closer to nuzzle Dean’s neck.

Dean rolled his eyes but indulged him anyway. He tilted his head to the side so Roman could kiss along his neck and drag his tongue along his pulse. “What makes you think we were gonna see each other later?”

“Because I asked,” Roman said against his jaw as he kissed up to his lips. “And you stopped telling me no weeks ago.”

“Fuck off!” Dean said exasperatedly as he pulled away before Roman could kiss him properly. “You’re an asshole, dude.”

Roman laughed and stood up straight. “If I wasn’t, would you even be here?”

Dean pretended to think about it before he shrugged. “Guess not. But don’t get too cocky. I could just be doing this for the money or bragging rights.”

Roman gave him a dismissively look before he winked at him and grabbed a jacket that was draped over the chair by the desk. “I’ll be back in a few hours. Make yourself comfortable. Mi casa, yada yada…”

“Uh, ok,” Dean said as Roman gave him a thumbs up and left him sitting there in his king-sized bed. He looked around the large guest room and wondered what the fuck he was gonna do in another guy’s house for a few hours.


	5. Chapter 5

_“You can take the kid out of poverty, but you can never take poverty out of the kid. Remember that, Mr. Big Shot Hollywood.”_

One of Dean’s childhood friends from back in Ohio, Heath Slater, had said that to him when he finally rejected his request for yet another cash loan. Heath and his old drugged up bum friends had called him a sell-out and left him with some hurtful parting words. Dean never forgot that line, but it didn’t hurt anymore. It was true, though. He still did some of the things he did as a poor kid. One of those things included being fascinated with rich people’s stuff.

Roman had a lot of rich people stuff in his house.

Dean showered in one of his huge bathrooms which had heated floors and a rainforest shower with jets of water coming out of the wall and shit. Then, he put his clothes to wash and helped himself to a comfy robe before he gave himself a grand tour of Roman’s extravagant house. He stared at the art on the walls and poked at the espresso machine. He made carbonated water in Roman’s fancy soda maker and rummaged in his fruit and vegetable crisper, which was as large as his normal refrigerator and stock full.

He was just about to grab a dragonfruit and finally eat one after only seeing pictures of them when he heard a scream from behind him. Dean turned around and dropped the dragon fruit at the same time the other person dropped the items in their hands and began fumbling with their keys. Dean grabbed at his chest and relaxed when he saw it was only Bayley.

“Mr. Ambrose?!” She asked as she pointed her pepper spray at him and lowered it again in one quick, smooth but hesitant motion as if she was unsure if she should spray him or not. “What are you –?”

“Just call me Dean,” Dean said as he stared nervously at her pepper spray. “I promise that I have permission to be here, ok?”

Bayley sighed and shoved the keys with her pepper spray in her back pocket. “Sorry, someone broke into Roman’s house during my first month of working for him and I’ve been super on edge ever since.” She bent down to pick up all the papers she dropped and Dean moved forward to help her. “Roman didn’t even tell me you would be here. I spoke to him this morning.”

Dean shrugged. “Yeah, I don’t think we were planning it or anything. He seemed distracted. Maybe he forgot to mention it.”

Bayley stood up straight and stared at him for a while before her face went red. She looked away quickly and tucked some of the strands of hair she didn’t have pulled up behind her ear. “Well, uh, I just came over to drop these papers off. I’m going to leave them in his study,” she said as she glanced at his torso again before looking away. The motion caused Dean to look down and realize that his robe had come undone a little and he was almost exposed. He fixed himself quickly and gave her an apologetic look.

She cleared her throat. “If you need anything…”

“You’re his assistant, not mine.” Dean chuckled.

Bayley smiled sweetly and nodded. “Yeah, well… I’ve never encountered anyone other than family and friends alone in his house before. I’m not sure if he’d want me to make sure you’re comfortable or… whatever. He’s quite the charmer like that.”

“Well, treat me like you treat his friends,” Dean offered.

“But, you’re not just his friend,” Bayley said, and then she bit her bottom lip nervously. “Sorry, not my business. Um… I’m gonna go drop this off in his study. Carry on with your… snooping.”

Dean watched as she turned and left the kitchen in a hurry and tried not to dwell too much on anything she said.

* * *

Bayley left about a half an hour after she came. Before she left, Dean asked her if she wanted to hang out for a while because the house was big and empty and she looked she could use a break, but she said it was inappropriate. On her way out the door, she asked about Kevin, which Dean thought was strange at first since Kevin wasn’t the sort of person that people usually wanted to inquire about, but judging by her expression and forced-nonchalance, he assumed she _liked_ him.

After Bayley was gone, Dean put his freshly washed clothes in the dryer and wandered around Roman’s house until the homeowner returned. Dean was in the backyard staring at the manmade waterfall which served as a backdrop to the seating area when Roman joined him.

“There used to be fish in there,” Roman said as Dean turned to see who had opened the back door. “Previous owners gave them to me and I gave them to Bayley’s mom. Speaking of, I heard you gave her quite a scare earlier.”

Dean grinned. “I think she scared me more than I scared her.

“See you made yourself at home,” Roman said as he looked down at Dean’s robe.

“I had to wash my clothes and I didn’t want to prance around naked in your house,” Dean said. “And it’s a good thing I didn’t because your assistant arrived while I was bent over in front of your refrigerator.”

“I wouldn’t have minded coming home to you walking around my house naked,” Roman said slyly as he came up behind Dean to wrap an arm around his waist. “In fact, that’s what I was expecting.”

Dean grinned despite himself and pushed Roman’s wandering hands way. “Are you perpetually horny? Is this how you treat all of your guests?”

Roman shrugged, “Only the sexy ones.”

Dean rolled his eyes and folded his arms and Roman laughed again. He folded his arms across his chest as well to mirror Dean’s stance. “Ok, you wanna hang out? Watch a movie or something? I’ve got a killer entertainment room.”

Dean adjusted his robe in a weak attempt to preserve his modesty and Roman cocked his brow in amusement. “Yeah, I can go for a movie.”

 

* * *

 

They only reached about a third of Pineapple Express before Roman had his hands in the slit of Dean’s robe and wrapped snugly around his dick. And although Seth Rogen’s ridiculous laugh was the last thing Dean wanted to hear while he was getting a handjob, said handjob was more than good enough to make him tune it out.

Eventually, they ended up upstairs, in Roman’s huge, cozy bedroom. Roman pressed him down into his bed and fucked him in about four different positions, all while encouraging Dean to make more noises because nobody could hear them. And Dean took pleasure in doing just that, moaning and groaning freely for what seemed like the first time since he’d only ever lived in apartments where being noisy during sex was uncouth.

Not that he wasn’t brash and uncivilized or anything, because he was. He just respected neighborly boundaries, is all.

But Roman didn’t have close neighbors, so when he made Dean come for the second time, Dean cursed until his tongue stopped moving properly and then he groaned low and deep in his chest as Roman continued to fuck into his oversensitive ass, drawing out Dean’s orgasm and staving off his own to prolong the torturous pleasure.

After Roman finally came, they flopped down side by side and stared up at themselves in the ceiling mirror, because of course Roman would have one. Roman looked fucked out, his face flushed and hair sticking up everywhere. Dean honestly didn’t look any better. He was in the middle of laughing at how wrecked they both looked when Roman leaned over him to catch his lips in a kiss. Dean wasn’t expecting it, but he went with it because it seemed natural enough. The kiss was deep and slow, languid and hot enough to make Dean groan a little against Roman’s lips.

When they pulled back, they stared at each other, breathing hot. Dean felt an overwhelming need to touch Roman’s full, spit-slicked lips, so he did. He grazed the pad of his thumb against Roman’s bottom lip and he laughed when Roman bit it playfully. Roman’s hand moved to run up and down his leg in a slow, soothing motion before it stopped at his waist.

“Wanna finish the movie?” Roman asked against Dean’s thumb as his own grazed against Dean’s hipbones. “It was going pretty good.”

Dean thought about It for a while then shook his head. “Nah. Let’s watch one of your movies. Not any of the recent shit. One of your old bad ones.”

“Can we not?” Roman asked with a groan.

Dean ignored Roman’s protests and reached over him for the remote on the nightstand. He knew for a fact that one of Roman’s early 2000s romcoms were on Video On Demand. It didn’t take long to find it, not even with Roman trying to pry the remote form his hands.

“Gift of Sky,” Dean said as he read the movie synopsis in an over the top movie announcer voice. “Sky (Peyton Royce) is a college sophomore who develops an ability to bring the dead back to life after drinking a mysterious substance on a dare from her sorority sisters. She quickly learns, however, that her gift to save lives isn’t all that cracked up to be.”

“Oh, no…” Roman groaned as he sank further into the bed. “I hate this one.”

“Let’s watch!” Dean said excitedly as he hit play.

The next hour was filled with Dean laughing at the bad acting and Roman cringing while trying to defend the movie’s appeal to young teenage girls. Dean wasn’t a huge fan of romantic movies, but he loved comedies and this movie was a comedy through and through. The plot was silly, the acting was horrid, and even the music was dramatically bad.

During the scene where the two leads kissed, Roman started dropping movie trivia.

“We had to shoot that kiss about 15 times. We kept messing up the scene because it was awkward. It was her first on-screen kiss.”

“She probably felt intimidated,” Dean said as he watched Peyton fumble through her lines on screen while crying and not shedding tears.

“Nah,” Roman said. “I think kissing me was actually gross for her because she, you know, bats for the other team.”

Dean laughed. “Really?!”

“Yep. She had some model chick hanging off her arm last time I saw her. She was hot as hell.”

Dean scratched at his scruff. “Interesting.”

There were rumors about Peyton Royce for years, but she never officially came out, and since she wasn’t exactly popular in Hollywood these days, no one really cared. And since no one cared, it wasn’t Dean’s job to give a damn either.

They finished the movie with more playful banter. Roman seemed to stop being embarrassed after a while and towards the end, when his character died in a tragic accident while trying to save Sky’s life and was brought back by a kiss, he and Dean laughed at the horrible revival scene until the credits ran.

After their chuckles and giggles died off, Roman spoke up after a brief silence.

“I want you to see Martyr,” he said as he turned to his side to look at Dean.

“Yeah?” Dean asked. “It’s better than this, right?”

Roman rolled his eyes, and he looked away and down at the space between them. It was the first time Dean had seen behind his bravado and his own smile faltered at the slight vulnerability in Roman’s expression.

“I’m proud of it,” Roman said. “Not to sound lame, but I poured myself into that role.”

Dean grinned. “Obviously the critics see that. You’re gonna clean house during awards season.”

Roman laughed, and it was so genuine that Dean felt a sudden rush of affection.

“I don’t care about awards,” Roman said, and then he thought about it for a while. “Actually, I do. I care about awards and I care about the validation, but that’s not why I act. I just like to become other people, you know? I like to tell stories.”

“I get it,” Dean said. “I gotta admit that you were good in Field Lights. You were pretty hot too. Runnin’ around in all that football gear.”

“Yeah?” Roman asked as he scoot closer. “I have 3 nude scenes in Martyr, by the way. And one is a sex scene.”

“Now I definitely have to see it.” Dean said as he dipped his hand under the covers over Roman’s lap. “But, I mean I’ve got you right here… And I shouldn’t be pressed for a sex scene when we can just fuck.”

Roman laughed and reached under the covers to grab Dean’s hand before it could reach his dick. “Now who’s the perpetually horny one?”

“Up for round… what is it? Round 3?”

Roman laughed again and leaned in to nose at Dean neck. “After we eat we can do whatever you want.”

“Whatever I want?” Dean asked as his imagination ran wild with the things he wanted to do to Roman, and the things he wanted Roman to do to him. He had a fleeting fantasy of Roman’s head between his legs and getting beard burn as Roman’s beard irritated the tender skin between his thighs.     

“Yeah,” Roman confirmed as he kissed the side of Dean’s lips and snaked his hands around Dean’s waist again.

It felt good at first – too good – with Roman’s hands on him and kissing him while whispering all the dirty shit he’d like to do to Dean once they ate and got their energy up. With a brush of Roman’s lips against his ear, that’s when Dean felt it; an abrupt leap in his stomach and a thickness in his throat. Dean knew those feelings well enough to categorize them as Genuine Feelings™ and the thought of liking Roman like that this fast was a little scary. The jolt of fear made him snap back to reality and he realized then that he was in bed with Roman Freaking Reigns doing cutesy shit and pretending he was a normal fucking person.

Dean pulled away and collected his thoughts for a bit before he turned to look at Roman’s fancy digital bedside clock. It was 4pm. He’d been here nearly all day.

“Shit, I gotta go,” Dean said abruptly as he sat up.

Roman seemed flustered by the sudden movement, but he sat up as well and stared at Dean. “Oh. Uh, ok.”

Dean got out of bed and found the robe he’d discarded about three hours ago. He would have to take another shower since he was covered in dried lube and his and Roman’s come, but that had to wait until he was home in his own apartment. He’d been here long enough.

He ignored Roman’s lazy gaze as he left the room, limping a little at the slight burn in his ass. When he reached Roman’s laundry room, he quickly put on his clothes, which were way past being done drying, and grabbed his wallet, phone, and keys from the folding table where he left them.

He went back to Roman’s room to find the other man still laying naked in his bed. He was now texting which, for some reason, bothered Dean.

“I’m heading off,” Dean announced as he tried not to stare, because it was a tempting sight there on that bed.

“Ok,” Roman said, and then he paused his texting to look up at Dean. “You good?”

“I’m cool!” Dean said with too much fake indifference. “Got some stuff to do. Errands to run and whatnot.”

Roman watched him for a while before he shrugged. “A’ight.”

“Alright,” Dean mimicked, then turned to leave. As he was walking out Roman stopped him.

“Call you later?” He asked as he moved to sit at the edge of the bed. His thick thighs and half-hard dick were inviting, but Dean forced himself to make eye contact. “I have a photoshoot for GQ tomorrow, but we can hang sometime later this week?”

“Yeah, dude, just hit me up.”

“Cool,” Roman said, and then flopped back on his bed and resumed texting.

Dean got that weird dismissive vibe again, but he shrugged it off before he could let it fester. Without allowing himself a moment to hang around longer, he left.

 

* * *

 

Roman didn’t speak to him for two days after that, but he did text him on the third day. He asked Dean if he wanted to get brunch, but Dean told him he couldn’t because he had filming. Technically, he did, but it was a short interview in the afternoon, which left him with more than enough time to go out with Roman, but…

Honestly, Dean still felt a conflicting ball of emotions in his gut and Roman was not the type of person to have conflicting emotions for. He liked the guy, sure, and he did enjoy spending time with him, but that post-coital moment they shared on the bed and the stuff they did after watching the movie was far too intimate and it left Dean feeling a little uncertain if he wanted to keep fucking around with Roman.

So, Dean did what he does best, which was to ignore problems and hope they’d fix themselves on its own or go away. The next two times Roman asked Dean out, Dean made it seem like he suddenly had something to do and that he was so busy. If Roman caught on that he was avoiding him, he didn’t say anything. As a matter of fact, it didn’t take long for him to stop texting Dean all-together, which admittedly, Dean was a little salty about, but he supposed he brought that on himself.

He was on set one afternoon about two weeks after last seeing Roman and a week after talking to him (not like he was keeping track or anything), wrapping up a shoot and watching playbacks when a very nervous skittish approached him.

“Mr. Ambrose?” She said quietly, leaning in so nobody around them could hear. “Roman Rei-”

“Dean!” A voice called from behind them and everyone turned to see Roman standing there surrounded by excited and swooning interns and assistants.

Summer, who was also there, stared at Roman as he approached them, a confused expression on her face. She turned to look at Dean, who turned to look at her. He offered her a shrug and she rolled her eyes and requested for the video they were looking at to be halted.

“Summer,” Roman said in greeting as he came to a stop in front of them. “I must say, gold is your color.”

Well, he wasn’t wrong. Dean was more of a silver person, but he liked the look of gold jewelry on Summer. The way she paired it with her outfit was nice. Dean knew very little about fashion and accessories, but he knew when something looked good, and Summer always looked good. Especially in gold.

“Still the flirt,” Summer said sounding mildly annoyed, but she was smiling, which was a relief to Dean for some reason.

“Still gorgeous,” Roman teased.

“What are you doing here?” Dean asked quickly before Roman and Summer could fall into a flirtatious banter.

“Oh, I’m just dropping in to see you,” Roman explained, and Dean suddenly _felt_ everyone’s eyes on them. “I’ve got a meeting with the big bosses upstairs about a show I’m interested in producing. Figured I’d stop by to say hi.”

Roman smiled brighter at him and the assistant next to him practically swooned. Dean huffed out an annoyed breath.

“I’ll be right back,” Dean said to Summer and the rest of their team as he brushed past Roman and mumbled, “Follow me.”

He didn’t even bother to check to see if Roman was following him before he marched off towards his dressing room. Once inside, he let Roman in and closed the door behind them.

“You know, I’m not usually the one to get tossed aside after sex.” Roman said as he poked around on Dean’s vanity. He picked up Dean’s Thor action figure and inspected it. “Nice doll.”

“It ain’t a doll!” Dean snapped as he snatched the figure away from Roman and set it back down on the vanity next to his Hulk figure. “And what are you usually? The tossee?”

“Tossee isn’t a word,” Roman corrected as he continued to look around Dean’s room. “And, no. I don’t kick people out after sex. They usually know when it’s time to go.”

“You cuddle everyone afterwards something?” Dean inquired before he could stop himself.

Roman finally turned around to look at him and he smirked, looking devious and delectable, but also infuriating. “I don’t make it a habit, Ambrose.”

They looked at each other for a while before Dean cleared his throat and sat down on the big comfy sofa that Summer had imported in for him after she told him his old chair was an eyesore.

“You been acting weird,” Roman said as he took a seat next to Dean. “And avoidant.”

“I gotta be honest, dude,” Dean said as he shifted in his seat. “That whole… situation… was too intimate for me. I don’t want this to go in a direction that would only end up being an issue for me.”

Roman stared at him for a while before a comprehensive expression came over his face. “I get it. We can cool it on the sex if you want and just be friends, but…”

“But what?” Dean prompted.

“I don’t really want to,” Roman said. “I mean, it’s up to you, but I’m just putting my cards on the table so you know where I stand at least.”

Dean was quiet for a long time as he tried to get his thoughts and wants in order. He took so long, that Roman sighed.

“We’re already dating,” He said. “We can put a label on it, continue doing what we’re doing, have some fun, and see where this goes.”

Dean scoffed. “We were dating?”

“Uh, yeah?” Roman said as cocked a brow and regarded Dean. “I mean, we never explicitly stated it, but… we’ve been going on dates this entire time.”

“Putting an official label on it sounds weird,” Dean said as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“It seems like putting a label on this will make you stop freaking out about having feelings for me, so…” Roman shrugged and let the sentence hang.

“Can you not be an asshole for 5 minutes?” Dean snapped.

Roman sighed as he stood up and shoved his hands into his pockets. “Look, you like me, I like you, we have fun, we go on dates, let’s call it what it is. It’s not a big deal.”

“Except you’re Roman Reigns,” Dean reminded him. “And I don’t want the baggage of dating a closeted super famous actor. If you were a normal guy, this could be as easy as you’re making it seem.”

Now it was Roman’s turn to be silent for a while before he grinned and looked down at his shoes. “We can be discreet.”

“You want to have a secret boyfriend?” Dean asked with a roll of his eyes. “I thought you weren’t into that.”

“Well, we don’t have to get that serious,” Roman said as he stepped closer until he was in Dean’s space. “But we can kinda be that exclusive. Maybe just take things slow and figure them out along the way. We can both see if we wanna take this to the next step or not.”

“You don’t seem the type to be exclusive or take things slowly,” Dean said as he gave Roman a disbelieving look.

“You think so?” Roman asked. “You should know by now to stop making assumptions about me.”

“Whatever,” Dean said dismissively. “For the record, I still think I was at least 80% right about you, man. I’m a good people reader.”

Roman gave him an odd look for a few seconds before he bent to kiss Dean’s lips. It was a tiny peck and it barely gave Dean a chance to react to it before it was gone. Dean felt like Roman kissed him to end the conversation. Like it was a fullstop.

“I gotta go to that meeting,” Roman said when he pulled back. “I’m running late, but I’m not rushing. They can wait.”

“Why? Because you’re Roman Reigns?”

Roman smiled, “Exactly.” He ruffled Dean’s hair and smoothed it back into place and Dean had to stop himself from leaning in because he loved when people touched his hair. He felt like a damn puppy and he would never admit it to anyone in a million years. “We takin’ it slow?”

“We can take it slow,” Dean decided as Roman’s hand left his shaggy hair. “Now, please go. If anyone finds out that I’m the reason why you kept the big bosses hanging, I’ll never work in this town again.”

“Ok, ok!” Roman relented as he turned to leave, but he stopped and turned to look at Dean with a confused expression on his face. “Wait. We didn’t determine how slow, though? We can still have sex, right?”

“Of course, we’re still having sex,” Dean said as he stood up. “What kind of dumb ass question is that?”

“This is a backwards ass ‘going slow’, but I’m not complaining,” Roman said as he turned to leave. “I’ll call you later?”

“Yeah, yeah…” Dean said as he shooed Roman out.

Before Roman left, however, he rushed back to kiss Dean’s forehead, right at the edge of his hairline. Dean scrunched up his nose and pulled away, feeling those scary, fluttery feelings again. The feelings lasted well after Roman was gone. Dean sat in his dressing room for a few minutes thinking about what the fuck he’d gotten himself in to.

Sure, he liked Roman, but could he get involved with someone as high profile? Someone that everyone watched and who got stalked in grocery stores and had his face plastered in magazines and websites? Someone who was semi-closeted and could be outed at any moment and cause a huge shit-storm as a result?

He had a lot to think about, and since he and Roman were taking whatever they were doing “slow”, he had time to figure out if this was what he really wanted. For now, though, he had to get back on set and face everyone who saw him drag Roman off to his dressing room.

Dean sighed and ran a hand through his hair and got his shit together before he headed back out.


End file.
